


Right Finger

by Earthwyrm



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Legal Drama, M/M, Romance, Self Expression, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Strangers to Friends, journey to self confidence, self discovery, watch as local farmer gets knocked unconscious
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-23
Updated: 2019-04-12
Packaged: 2019-11-28 21:47:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 28,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18214073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Earthwyrm/pseuds/Earthwyrm
Summary: Jackson was what people might call a "career student". Yes, he had a degree that he was focusing on and yes, he did in fact care about it. The problem was that he never really felt passionate about it, and being 23 and still in your third year at university wasn't something to take pride in. So, he called it quits. Following an inheritance left behind by his late grandfather, he moved to Pelican Town in Stardew Valley to start a new life, after promising his best friend that he'd always come back if things went south. There he finds new friends and new experiences like none he's had before, but when a rogue social media account begins outing personal secrets and delivering personal insults, Jackson can't help but feel like his new home is becoming less and less welcoming.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> My prior work, Pink Lemonade, can be considered the first draft of this. I eventually decided that Joel wasn't a compelling enough protagonist, and the general plot wasn't coming to life the way I wanted it to. I feel like this plot and character should be better in the long run! Thanks to all who read!

“....And, in summary, despite common agricultural concerns that letting a chicken roam free on farmed land will lead to long term damage and overall serve as a detriment to farming efforts, free roam chickens actually serve to improve the health and longevity of an established farm. Thank you so much for your time!”

Jackson removed his presentation from the display screen and looked back out over his audience. No applause, but that didn’t really come as much of a shock. He was the last presentation of this class, and at this point people were more focused on finally being able to leave for summer vacation. 

His professor gave a quick nod, followed by a quick “grades will be posted next week online”, and with that it was over. Jackson breathed a sigh of relief, gathered his laptop, and left the classroom for the last time. It was finally over.

Not that he was graduating, mind you. Despite being 23, he was only a third year student at his college, a fact that made it difficult for him to really relate to the other students. Where others went out on weekends to party or generally celebrate youth with their friends, Jackson found himself either holed up in his apartment studying or working another odd job to actually pay his rent. As he crossed the threshold of the academic building into the sunlight, he breathed a deep sigh of relief. 

“....All over now,” He said to himself, as he reached a hand into his bag to pull out a crumpled sheet of paper, “I’m ready, abue, hope you were right to give all this to me….”

Jackson returned the paper to his bag, as a small hand grabbed his shoulder.

“Didn’t think you’d be so quick to leave us. Not even gonna say goodbye?”

Olivia, also a third year. Despite being a Chemistry major, she studied enough agriculture to have a few overlaps into Jackson’s program. The two hit it off by chance in their first year, and had been close friends ever since. 

“Sorry I had to hop out, Livvie. I wanted to stop and say goodbye but I have to catch the bus.” 

“Then I’ll walk with you! I’m not just going to let you off with nothing at all.”

Jackson simply chuckled and wrapped his arm around hers. The two walked in silence off campus, all the way to the bus station. Once they got there, Jackson let her arm go and placed his bag down beside him, taking a seat on a bench and patting the space beside him. 

“You wanted a good bye, so here’s you chance.”

“You charmer,” she responded with a laugh, “Ok then, I’ll bite. This is your grandfather’s old place, right?”

“Yeah, it’s an old property out in Stardew Valley. I used to visit it when I was little, but it’s been….” Jackson counted on his fingers, “At least 13 years since I saw it last. Abue passed about two years ago so I imagine it’s not in the best condition right now, haha…”

“You sure this is for the best? I mean you aren’t even finishing your degree.”

“It’s going to be fine. I’ve studied enough agriculture now that I can get a basic farm running, and if things go well I’m sure I can find some online courses to give me some direction. There’s an old ranch down south of abue’s place, too, I’m sure that the owner will be willing to lend a hand.”

Olivia leaned back on the bench and threw her arms behind her head. She looked up at the sky in quiet contemplation. “...Your mom doesn’t like this, does she.”

Jackson simply shook his head with a somber expression. 

“Well you’re a grown-ass adult and she can get over it. As long as you’re confident in what you’re doing, well I’m with you and that’s all that should matter, right?”

“...Right. Right!” Jackson shuffled in place for a moment.

“Jackson…” 

Olivia placed her hand on the back of Jackson’s. Once again they sat in silence as Jackson stared at the road ahead. For early spring, he couldn’t help but notice how hot it felt as he wiped a lock of his red hair off his forehead. Olivia squeezed his hand.

“I’m right here. Don’t let nerves get the best of you.”

The distant rumble of an engine announced the bus’s arrival as it slowly chugged into view. Olivia rose to her feet and helped Jackson to his. He grabbed his bag and looked towards the street once more, before turning to her. He lifted his right pinky.

“Let’s make a vow. We’ll keep in touch, and we’ll always be there for each other no matter what. My new home will always be open to you, and you’ll always be there for me if I need a place to go. Swear on it?”

She simply gave a bright smile and hooked her pinky to his.

“Swear on it.”  
The two embraced before the bus came to a stop at the station. The doors swung open and the driver called out the next destination, Stardew Valley. Jackson grabbed his bag and hopped on as Olivia waved goodbye. 

“Knock ‘em dead! Not everyone gets to just follow their dreams you know!”

The doors shut and Jackson took his seat. As the bus began leaving he took his phone out and held his hand over a single contact. After a few minutes, he simply returned the phone to his pocket and threw his head into the bag in his lap. 

‘Sorry mom, not yet….’


	2. Dilapidated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a brief stop in Zuzu city, Jackson arrives to Pelican Town to find that the farm left for him isn't quite as he remembered it. Luckily the locals seem nice, and Olivia is quick to remind him that she's there for him. Still, a strange blue creature in his house doesn't help the situation.

If anyone would ask, Jackson would tell them it was a spur of the moment decision to get off at the bus stop at Zuzu City instead of Pelican Town. He’d say he was feeling adventurous, or even rebellious. The truth was that he had been planning the stop since the beginning. No one needed to know that, though. Jackson had always wanted to experiment with his appearance. Growing up, he was always expected to be clean cut and ‘presentable’. Clothes were typically plain, grayscale colors and hair was cropped at the ears. No flashy accessories, no splash of color, and certainly no piercings, at least not on a male.

‘Screw that history,’ Jackson had thought to himself while planning his trip. He was ready for a change, and in starting a new life he figured he would start with a new him. He scheduled an appointment with a cheap stylist and body modification studio and set aside time to stop in Zuzu before heading to Stardew Valley. A new hole in each ear and a splash of pink in his bangs later, and he felt ready to truly begin his new life. 

“This is me, this is who I want to be!” he hummed to himself as he headed towards the bus station, “I don’t even care if the valley turns out to be a podunk paradise, and I don’t care if everyone judges me. I’m gonna be me for once, damn it!”

The angry look from a nearby mother with a young toddler, however, quickly reminded him that he did still care what others thought and he did need to avoid swearing in front of children. He sheepishly hid his blushing face as he boarded his final bus and settled in for another three hour ride. The cityscape slowly melted away into the horizon, replaced with verdant fields of grass and sparse patches of trees and shrubbery. Every so often, pink petals matching his new streak would float by in the air and settle on the window before being swept away by the wind. Jackson couldn’t help but smile at the world around him, so alive and fresh! He had hardly noticed when the bus came to a slow stop and announced his arrival. With a spring step, he grabbed his bag and hopped off.

To say the stop was not in the best shape would be an understatement. Jackson couldn’t help but notice that the whole place looked like no one had been there in months. Weeds shot up everywhere, and nearby fence posts were slowly being chewed away by rot and termites. This was not leaving the best first impression. Luckily, the old bus stop wasn’t what he was here for. Instead, he met eyes with the middle aged redhead woman he was actually here to see. She strutted towards him with purpose, a warm grin on her face.

“You must be Jackson, right? My name’s Robin, Mayor Lewis asked me to go ahead and meet you here. Hey, a redhead just like me! Been a while since I saw one of those!” She let out a small laugh as she held her hand out. Jackson firmly grabbed it in his own and gave it a shake, noting that her grip was about three times stronger than his own.

“I’ll show you to your granddad’s old place,Lewis says he’ll meet us there. Don’t worry, I made sure that the luggage you sent was left inside already!”

Robin lead the way due west of the bus stop, down an old dirt trail that seemed even less well kept than the bus stop was. It eventually opened into a small patch of land surrounded by trees and littered with fallen debris and rocks. Jackson stopped in his tracks as he looked the place over.

“This can’t be right, this isn’t the place I visited with abue at all. It’s all overgrown. Where’s his old coop and shed, or those old scarecrows?” Jackson desperately scanned around for a path they must have missed as Robin simply shook her head.

“Your grandad didn’t really have the ability to take care of this place once he got sick, you know. A few seasons and no care leads to overgrowth and rubble pretty quick, and this is about three years’ worth of neglect. I was surprised when I heard you even wanted this old place and didn’t just take the money in the inheritance. I always expected the bank to take this place and run with it.”

“Abue was serious in his letter about me coming here. I think he always...kinda knew that I wasn’t really happy in school, haha. I know it would’ve been easier to just run with the cash but I couldn’t just let the bank bulldoze this place and turn it into a Joja Mart or something, you know?” Jackson kicked at a rock near his feet, sending it tumbling into the trees, “Besides, there’s a lot of memories here.”

Robin put her hand on Jackson’s shoulder. Side by side, he couldn’t help but feel short. She stood at least 6 feet even, while he was only about 5’7’’. “Well my family at least has a lot of respect for you, taking this up as young as you are.”

Robin was quickly interrupted by the honk of an old car horn. Turning around, the pair saw as a rusted green truck with a makeshift trunk slowly pulled onto the farm. Once the engine stopped, an old gentleman with a clover green shirt and a dirt brown cap stepped out. 

“Lewis!” Jackson shouted, running over to embrace the man.

“Jackson, my boy! It’s been some time there, hasn’t it? You’ve grown so much since your were a tot, to think I get to see you like this!”

“Well it’s been at least 10 years, yeah? I’d hope I’ve grown at least some,” Jackson laughed, letting go. He adjusted his shirt before continuing, “Thanks, by the way, for helping with the inheritance details. I was worried I was going to need to hire a lawyer or something, and mom wasn’t going to help at all with it…”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry. We’re just glad someone fairly close to the town is getting ownership of the old land. Now then, has Robin shown you your new home?” Robin shook her head no in response. “Well then, let’s go take a look huh? I haven’t seen the old cabin in a few years myself!”  
It wasn’t much further north than they were, but it was rather easy to quickly overlook. The cabin that once housed Jackson’s grandfather had succumbed to the wild, as moss grew over the roof and a tree had begun to attempt to take root in the side. The wood paneling was fading and cracked in a few places, and by simply looking at it Jackson could already tell that the interior wasn’t in better condition. 

“Yikes, what a nasty old place. This thing should be condemned and torn down. Lewis you can’t seriously think that he should stay there, he won’t last the night!”

“No,” Jackson interjected before Lewis could open his mouth, “I signed up for a new life and new experiences. It’s….not what I was expecting the old place to look like, but it isn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen. I’ll survive, as long as it has electricity.”

“I had it wired about a month ago when an electrician from Zuzu came down. I figured you would need that,” Lewis replied.

“Then it’s perfect as is. I know everything here isn’t really….in the best condition. It’s fine,” Jackson stuck his right pointer finger in the air, “But, I solemnly swear that I’ll restore this old place to a new glory. That’s what I’m here for, after all.”

“Good lad! Just like your old grandad. Just don’t work yourself to death, take some time to visit us in town and get to know the place. In fact, how about tomorrow you go about and introduce yourself to everyone in town? That should get everyone acquainted with you, and maybe you’ll make some friends. We like to say that there isn’t a single stranger in Pelican Town, after all!”

Jackson nodded, and waved as the two hopped into Lewis’s truck. After a few minutes of engine difficulty, the old beast started once more and slowly began pulling out of the farm, leaving Jackson alone with his new home and his thoughts. He dropped his bag to the ground beside him and slumped over on the steps.

“Aw hell, what am I gonna do? Abue you didn’t tell me you weren’t taking care of this old place, you told me you were gonna leave it nice for me!” Jackson fumbled in his bag and pulled out the slip of paper once more, “You even said that you were leaving your ‘granja hermosa’ for me. This ain’t any hermosa granja I’ve ever seen!”

He threw the letter back in and whipped out his phone, snapping a picture and sending it to Olivia. She buzzed him back not even a minute later.

‘OMG is this real??? The pics you showed me before didn’t look like this!’

‘Yeah, turns out abue wasn’t actually taking care of this place before he passed, and no one in town stepped in. Here, look at his house.’  
‘EWWW! You gonna be ok? That’s a lot of trash to clean, and that house looks like it’s ready to fall over.’

‘I mean…’  
‘I should be fine. I knew what I was getting into.’

‘Well if you say so, Jakkie. I’m still here.’

‘Damn straight you are. You swore.’

‘>Damn straight’  
‘Ironic hearing you say that ;P’

‘Haha. I gotta unpack, talk to you later.’

‘Talk to you later, Jakkie.’

Jackson returned the phone to his pocket and finally stepped into the house. As expected, inside wasn’t any better than the outside. If anything, it was worse. There was at least one hole in the roof, and aside from a small table, chair, bed, and television, there was nothing else of note. At the very least, Robin had indeed made sure his larger suitcase made it. Lying in the center of the floor appeared to be a box from Lewis as well. He’d be sure to open that later, for now he set his laptop up on the table and plugged it in to charge. As he leaned over to plug the cord into the outlet, he couldn’t help but hear what almost sounded like a wet sloshing noise. He perked his head up, and looked around the room before his eyes fell on something round and blue in the corner of the room.

“Yoba is that mold? Maybe I shouldn’t stay the night…”

Then the object turned and revealed two, bright eyes that peered back at Jackson. Jackson jumped back and tripped over the box Lewis left, falling over and landing with a thud that startled the creature. It was surprisingly agile, slipping away and out the front door in a matter of seconds.

“Ok, great. Old house, overrun farm, and now I’ve got some weird blue thing hanging around. Abue you’re lucky I love you,” Jackson said, throwing himself on the bed.

“I’m gonna fix this place up anyway, but you owe me!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not aiming for daily updates, but it's possible I might be able to stay on a somewhat consistent schedule. I like to post shorter chapters for fanfic work, so apologies that this doesn't actually meet anyone other than Robin or Lewis yet! We're getting there, next chapter should be longer and will finally introduce the man of the hour.


	3. How to Let a Boy Ruin You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jackson finally greets his first day of proper farm life and takes some time to get to know to residents of Pelican Town. Its there, though, that trouble rears its beautiful head....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tip for reading text conversations: every proper line break is a new person talking. Whenever a message is immediately under another with no space between lines, that's the same person talking.

An incessant, shrill, ringing. An incessant, shrill, screaming cacophony of a ring that penetrated every last rotted board in that old cottage that Jackson was calling home. That was the cursed noise that led to him jolting out of bed and once again finding himself face first on the ground in an unceremonious display of a lack of coordination and dexterity. Prying himself off the floor, Jackson finally quieted the screaming alarm and checked the time on his phone.

Six a.m. 

“Yoba,” he swore in a whisper under his breath, “I already skipped morning classes, am I really gonna force myself to do this every day?”

Well, not really a question he could ask himself. He sighed and slumped his freckled shoulders. This was the life he signed up for, and it came with caveats. One of them is being a responsible morning person. No better time to start establishing good habits than day one, after all!

Stumbling across the floor on unsteady feet, Jackson found his way to the bathroom and began his new daily ritual. A quick comb through his wavy hair, a splash of water across his freckled face, and a thorough scrub of his teeth. He contemplated putting on sunscreen, but he figured that his naturally tan skin would be fine during spring. Come summer, though, all bets were off. His hair color did come from somewhere after all, and that somewhere was very, very white. He considered himself lucky to have gotten his mother’s skin in the end, but dad wasn’t without contribution. 

Finally cleaned and ready to start the day, Jackson finally stopped to open the package left for him from Lewis. Atop was a note, scrawled over in near dead pen ink.

“Jackson- Your grandad left some old tools behind for you. Figured you’d like to have them to help get you started. I also included some parsnip seeds. Good luck getting that old place up and running again! -Lewis”

Jackson smiled to himself. The people in town were already looking out for him, it seemed. He went ahead and packed the tools into a special bag he had bought for his farm work and set out to look over the land once more. Seemed the damage report from yesterday was right after all, the place really was less than even a shadow of its former glory. Weeds, trees, rocks, branches….the farm was covered in encroaching nature. 

“Gonna be a lotta work to put this place together again, huh? Guess I gotta start somewhere….yeah that sounds right. Gotta start somewhere! Hah…”

 

It was still early, but Jackson could already feel the sun creeping over the horizon. Its rays offered no relief as he begun clearing land to plant the seeds left behind for him. Despite being an early spring morning, it was unbelievably hot. It was as if nature itself had decided to give Jackson a full authentic farming experience on his very first day there.

Fantastic, truly fantastic. But despite the city urging within him begging him to call it quits and head back to school, Jackson managed to get every last seed planted and watered as well as clear several square feet of land. He wiped the sweat off his brow and smiled, looking over what he had done.

“I’ve got something started here, huh?”

“Looks like it!” Shouted a feminine voice from somewhere down south. Jackson jumped, scrambling to grab his falling hoe before it hit the ground. He barely grabbed it back into his hands as the newest guest stepped into view from the trees, a tall, red haired woman dressed in green with pale skin. She laughed as she stepped up beside him.

“You’re making better progress than I expected a city boy to make on their first day,” she shot a hand out to Jackson, who hesitantly stuck his own out. “Leah,” she said with a warm smile, “I live in the forest down south from here. I heard that the new guy was moving in, and I figured I needed to stop by and greet my new neighbor and give him a hand. Looks like you got everything taken care of, though. I have to say I’m kinda impressed….er…?”

“Jackson. Er, uh, I’m Jackson! Nice to meet you, Leah.”

“So where’d you learn to farm from, then? I can already tell by your layout here that some actual thought went into it, it reminds me of some of the plots I’ve seen Marnie set up before.”

“Oh!” Jackson’s eyes lit up, “I was an agricultural studies major back in school. I never graduated, but I was studying it for about five years before I came here. Parsnips are pretty simple and don’t need much space over all, but I figured I could optimize my energy spent on their care by spreading them out just enough to let water disperse between their root systems better. It’s rather simple actually!”

Leah simply laughed in response. “You’re such a geek! I was hoping you’d be some city trash kid and be hopelessly lost. You didn’t leave me anything to poke fun at!” She shook her head. “Ah well, glad to know you’ve got yourself pulled together. Hey, if you ever do need a hand though, stop by my cottage down south, ok? I’ve heard some great stories about this old place and I’d love to see it back together again. Hell, I’d be ready to paint it if it got really nice!”

She waved as she headed back into the trees. Jackson bid her farewell in turn, before going inside the cottage once more to clean himself up before heading into town. Looks like his introductions were starting sooner rather than later, but he swore that the next few would be a better first impression. Throwing on a clean shirt, he marched off past the bus station and into town, getting there at about 12:30 p.m.

And for the middle of the day, it was surprisingly silent in town. Aside from an older woman carefully navigating her bony fingers around weeds in some community flower pots, it didn’t seem like anyone was really out. Jackson decided to leave the old woman be for now, not really having the nerve to interrupt her in the middle of her work, and instead headed towards a row of homes down to the south. 

“Ok,” he muttered to himself, “You’ll have to say hello eventually, now’s the best time. No one is gonna mind if you knock on the door, no one is gonna mind that you’re just stopping to say hello. No one is a stranger here….hah ok! Here we go! Right….now!”

He stood there. He wound up standing with his hand prepped to knock for several minutes before a boy with tall blond hair threw it opened and stepped out, almost colliding with Jackson’s fist. The dude was tall, towering over Jackson by nearly half a foot, and looked down at him a bit confused.

“Oh, uh, hey? What’s up?” he asked, head cocked to the side.

“H-h-hi, I’m J-Jackson, and-”

“Oh, rad! You’re that new farmer guy, right?” The boy gave a beaming smile and tucked a skateboard under his arm, “I heard about you from mom, the whole town’s been talking about you!”

 

“The….whole town….hah….”

“Yeah! Everyone’s pumped to get to know you! I’m Sam, by the way. It’s great to meet you….?”

“J-Jackson.”

“J-Jackson!” he teased. Jackson stepped back off the step to let the boy pass with his board. He looked back and threw up a peace sign.

“Hit me up if you wanna hang, I’d love to get to know you man!” Sam said as he hopped on his board and rode off.

Jackson could still feel adrenaline coursing through his body as he met with his next few people, all notably less energetic than Sam had been. One girl, Emily, seemed fairly quirky, but everyone overall appeared to be simple, normal people. According to that Emily girl, though, he was just missing a chance to meet her sister. Not that that was skin off his back, he didn’t really sincerely want to meet more people than necessary today anyway.

He headed back into town and figured it was time to meet that older woman. He never really felt himself get nervous around grandmotherly types, and he knew that it could be really rewarding to get close with older people. They had some of the best stories to tell after all! He began navigating to their house when he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. Peeling his shirt back, he was met with a patch of angry red skin down his neck and onto his left shoulder. 

“Aww damn it! I shoulda worn sunscreen after all. Gah this is gonna suck!”

His swearing was met in response with a soft baritone voice. 

“Sunburn? I got aloe at home if you need it.”

Jackson turned his head to see who was greeting him and found his eyes falling on a young man leaning against a dog pen. He had beautiful tan skin not unlike Jackson’s own, chestnut brown hair, a small dimple in his chin, and dazzling emerald green eyes. What appeared to be a green varsity jacket covered what Jackson could already tell was an impressive frame, and though the man was only taller than him by a few inches he knew that this man was much stronger than he was.

He could feel his damned heart pounding in his chest already, and found himself cursing inside.

“O-oh n-no I’m f-f-fine...yeah t-totally fine!”

He was not fine. He was very much not fine.

“You sure, dude? Here, let me see.” 

The man stood up straight and strolled over as Jackson felt his face flushing a deep scarlet red. ‘No no no, absolutely not. You are NOT falling for the first pretty boy you meet here, Jackson Varo! You know better!’ He swore to himself internally as the man inspected the burn on his shoulder.

“Awww man, come on inside for a bit. This burn needs a little bit of aloe, and you look really flushed. You’re the new farmer, yeah? You can’t work yourself to death on your first day,” the man said, turning towards the nearby blue house and heading over. “Just get out of the sun for a few minutes. You don’t want to get, like….heatstroke or something.”

Despite his jello legs, Jackson managed to slowly make his way inside. It was a quaint little home, the kind that a sweet southern grandmother would have. Everything was neatly kept and clean, with little porcelain knick-knacks set atop intricately woven doilies. The scent of cinnamon cookies wafted through the house as the sound of a news program emanated from the other room. The man led Jackson into the kitchen, where the older woman from earlier was pulling a tray of cookies from the oven. She turned to the man with a gentle smile, he wrinkled face merely showing that to be something she did a lot of. 

“Alex, who is this young man? I haven’t seen him before, I don’t believe.”

“Grannie this is the new farmer.”

Jackson stuck his hand out instinctively before realizing that the woman was holding a hot tray of baked goods. He sheepishly withdrew his hand. “My name’s Jackson, ma’am. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“And a pleasure it is, Jackman. It isn’t very often we get new visitors here after all! I’m Evelyn, but you can call me grannie if you would like.”

“Grannie, do you still have that aloe gel in the fridge?” Alex interrupted.

“Oh? Why, yes I believe so. Do you need it?”

“It’s just a small burn, ma’am, I’m sure it’s nothing.”

Evelyn placed her tray on the table before the two boys before crossing her arms and tapping her foot. “Now now,” she tutted, “A burn is a burn, sweetie. You need to make sure you treat it so it doesn’t get worse. Now then, Alex could you fetch it? My old eyes aren’t what they used to be.”

“Sure thing!” Alex replied, hopping over to the fridge and retrieving a small bottle of gel. He popped the cap off and threw some into his hand. “Hold still, I’ll get it for you!”

Jackson could’ve sworn his heart stopped in that moment, as Alex applied the cool gel to his burned shoulder. After he was finished he nodded with pride and sat back down. “All good, farmer guy. That should heal right up. You ok, you still look kinda sick?”

“NOPE! FINE!” Jackson shouted before quickly covering his mouth, “I mean uh, nope. I’m f-fine! Thanks for the gel, I really appreciate it.”

Evelyn placed her bony hand on Jackson’s. “You are more than welcome, dear! Here, have a cookie!” With unsteady hands she grabbed a cookie from the tray, but Jackson simply placed it back down as he stood.

“No, no, I really gotta go haha! Lots of people to meet, lots of things to do, busy busy busy!”

With scarlet cheeks, he dashed out of the house and back to the farm, not stopping once for air the whole time. Alex and his grandmother merely exchanged a quick look.

“He’s kinda weird, huh granny?”

“I think he’s sweet, he should do very well here.”

“Yeah,” Alex said, leaning back in his chair and biting into a cookie, “I think he will too.”

\----------

It was roughly 6 p.m. when Jackson got home. He immediately threw himself into the bed and screamed for a solid three minutes straight, before grabbing his phone and typing a message.

‘Olivia.’

‘’Sup boo?’

‘Olivia I did the thing.’

‘The farming thing, the meeting new people thing, or the living your dream thing?’

‘No no.’  
‘The other thing’

‘You can’t be serious Jakkie. You’ve only been there a day.’

‘I know I know!’

‘Jakkie I swear.’  
‘You’re a gay nightmare.’

‘You’re so sweet.’

‘Bitch I know ;P’  
‘So who is he?’

‘A jock type dude, from what I gathered. Lives with his grandparents.’

‘Family man, nice.’

‘I had a sunburn and he gave me aloe.’

‘Medically gifted, even better.’

‘He rubbed it on.’

‘How did you not die on the spot? :o’

‘I almost threw up on their floor.’

‘Jakkie you gotta not let boys ruin you like this.’

‘I KNOW! It’s just...ugh…’  
‘I wanted to focus on actually making this farming thing work first, now I’m just gonna be all…’  
‘Distracted.’

‘You’ll be fine Jakkie. He’s just a boy.’

‘Yeah.’

Jackson hesitated to think of what to say next when his eyes caught a familiar round, blue blob in the corner of his room. 

‘Brb. There’s something in the room again’

He placed his phone down and slowly approached the blob. Once he was certain it hadn’t spotted him, he attempted to grab it. Unfortunately he proved to be too slow, as the creature slipped out of the way and bounced off of Jackson’s face before slipping out the door, leaving him coated in a sticky residue. He shook his head before going into the bathroom to wash whatever this slime was off, muttering angrily to himself in a mixture of frustration towards the creature and embarrassment over his performance today. Regardless, his alarm was set for another 6 a.m. wake up tomorrow, and there was no use avoiding a new day. With thousands of thoughts swirling in his head, he slid into bed and drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No story is complete without a B plot. Unfortunately, I love to add C and D plots too. Maybe I need to make a chart to keep track of it all.....


	4. Crooks, Creatures, and Puppies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jackson takes time to buy sunscreen and nearly sells his soul, and the blue creature decides to try and make a love connection.

Spring, the season of new life, new opportunity, new love…..and allergies. Jackson was reminded of this last fact by a horrifically stuffed up nose when he woke up the next day. A farmer with a pollen allergy, he was almost certain there was some kind of irony to that. Not that it mattered much today anyway, Jackson had already decided to spend most of the day indoors planning the farm’s future layout. Aside from just helping create a plan of attack for how to deal with all the debris strewn about, he also was able to start planning for new construction. Based on how his cabin was, chances are good that any old farm buildings he found would likely need to be torn down and used for scrap parts anyway. 

After quick field work, he sat down at his table and began tapping away at his laptop. A simple combination of an excel spreadsheet and some clever color coding allowed him to get a good overview of the place as a whole. He worked like this for nearly three hours before he felt his eyes drying out. With a stretch, he pulled himself away from the table and headed back outdoors. He began heading towards town when he caught sight of mail left in his box. Curious, he gave it a quick look.

‘Jackson- I meant to send this yesterday, but I’m sorry for being so hard on your grandad’s old place. I know it probably holds some fond memories for you and your family, so it was a bit rude of me to disparage it. 

‘Also, if you’re interested, I do carpentry work here in town. If you’re interested, I can help you out with farm construction and the like. You bring me the cash and materials and I’ll get whatever you need done in three days or less, I guarantee it! -Robin’

Jackson chuckled to himself. Robin couldn’t have timed that one better. “Wish she wouldn’t beat herself up though, she’s right. That old place is kinda a dump….”

Pocketing the letter, Jackson headed into town praying he didn’t bump into that Alex guy again. He could already tell he had another sunburn and he did not need another treatment, he wasn’t certain he could handle it. Just thinking about it made his face flush….Yoba why did he have to be like this? He decided first thing he needed to do was stop by the general store and pick up some sunscreen. No sunburn, no embarrassing encounters, right? 

Sadly, as he would soon become regularly frustrated with, the general store wasn’t open on Wednesdays. He stood there and stared like an idiot at the doors in a mix of confusion and disbelief when he felt a hand grab his shoulder. He jumped, half from the surprise and half because whoever this was had decided to firmly grab his sunburn. Whipping around, he was greeted by Sam.

“YEAGH! Careful, careful!” Jackson shouted, removing Sam’s hand from his shoulder, “I got burned bad yesterday!”  
The boy just gave one of his bright smiles….is he ever not doing that? “Sorry, man, sorry! I just saw you walking over and thought I’d say hi!” He stepped up beside Jackson and looked at the doorway, shaking his head. “Yeah total inconvenience. Pierre never opens on Wednesday, not really sure why though. Mom normally just goes to Joja down the street these days anyway.”

“Joja? Oh that national chain? I didn’t think they’d have a store in a tiny place like this.”

 

“Opened about a year ago, I think? I got a job there not too long ago. Hey if you ever catch me working stop by and say hi, yeah? That place is boring as hell and we hardly have customers anyway.”

“Sure,” Jackson said with a smile, “Hey do they carry sunscreen by chance? I’m fresh out.”

Sam shrugged. “Dunno, probably? I don’t stock, that’s Shane’s job. I just keep the floors clean.” 

“Ah well...uh….thanks anyway.”

“No problem, man! Hey make sure you stop by sometime, I’d love to get to know you better!” Sam said as he hopped onto his skateboard, “Hope things have gone well for you so far, man! Catch you later!”

Jackson shook his head as Sam left. Some people are blessed with the gift of gab, as his mom had always called it. Jackson never considered himself one of those people, though. He wasn’t even able to order for himself at a restaurant until he was almost 14! He couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy towards Sam….

‘No,’ he thought to himself, ‘Don’t start forming weird hangups with people. You’re better than this.’ Shaking it off, he headed towards the Joja Mart, just across a small stone bridge over a river. 

Joja was a large, somewhat run down, blue building on the edge of town. A stock truck that looked as if it hadn’t run in years sat off to the side. With a bit of hesitation, Jackson stepped inside only to be blasted by a frigid AC system. Behind the front counter sat a goblin of a man, who greeted him with a wide, almost unnatural grin. His hair was meticulously styled with the care of someone from the city. He wore a fine pressed suit, and peered at Jackson with beady eyes behind a set of spectacles. Jackson couldn’t help but feel as if he was being sized up like prey.

“Welcome to Joja Mart, I am Morris. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance!” the man said in a voice that almost felt sincere. He stood up from his chair and stuck his hand out. Jackson carefully met it with his own, only to feel his arm yanked towards the man and shook. 

“My my!” he continued, “You must be that new farmer the town was abuzz about recently! Well I hope that we can meet all of your farming needs, after all Joja is beyond proud to meet the needs of upstart businessmen such as yourself!”

“Businessman?” Jackson took his hand back, “I don’t really think I’m anything like that.”

“Oh? But of course you are! Just like me you seek to create something larger than yourself and cultivate it for profit! What else would you be farming for, anyhow?”

Jackson thought to himself for a moment. What was he farming for? “I don’t really know,” he said after a moment, “But does it really matter? As long as I’m happy and I’m not hurting anyone, it shouldn’t really matter why I’m doing what I’m doing.” He scratched his head. That sounded right anyway, he wasn’t entirely sure what this dude was getting at.

“Hmm, well perhaps I can help you figure out why you’re here, then! Why, we all have a reason we do what we do. I know!” he exclaimed, bending down to grab something from behind the desk. He popped back up with a clipboard and a pen. “Perhaps a Joja membership would assist? Join with us, thrive! Alongside Joja you will not only receive the benefits of small discounts on all Joja products, but you can also become one of our exclusive produce partners! We will purchase all of your produce and distribute them at the national level! Just think, your farm would become known across the whole country!”

Jackson took the clipboard in hand and looked it over. Morris drummed his fingers on his desk with an anxious rhythm. 

“Hm? Now now why aren’t you signing?”

“I always read the fine print, I’ve dealt with legal stuff before,” Jackson replied curtly, running his finger along each line. He glanced up at Morris after a minute, and handed the clipboard back. “Fail to read the fine print, and you miss stuff like ‘handing over property rights’ and ‘being forced to open a loaning account with Joja’. You thought you could trick me, yeah?”

“W-well…” Morris adjusted his collar, “We have certain legal procedures we must follow here at Joja, a-and they involve certain monetary requirements-”

“What you thought was that you could take advantage of what you thought was a dumb kid.” Jackson could feel his heart pounding. Keep it together, keep it together….he kept repeating this to himself as he placed the clipboard back on the desk and slid it to Morris. “No thanks. Can you point me to the sunscreen, please?”  
With a look of defeat, Morris pointed to a nearby aisle. Jackson gave a quick thanks, before making his purchase and heading home for the night. There he was greeted once again by a familiar blue blob. 

“So is this gonna be a regular thing, little guy?” he said, placing his bag on the table and strutting over to the creature, “I’d rather it not be.”

The creature looked up at him with innocent eyes before slipping out the front door once more. Not to be defeated a third night in a row, Jackson gave chase. The two darted into town, Jackson marvelling at how a creature with no legs was able to move so fast. He chased the thing to the north of town before he found himself colliding headfirst into what felt like a brick wall. He fell over in a daze, his head spinning. The last thing he saw was a large shadow hanging over him before he passed out cold.

Jackson woke up the next morning in a sterile white room, a scraggly man with unkempt hair, square glasses, and a brown mustache sitting next to him.

“Oh good, you’re awake!” 

“Yoba...what the hell happened? My head is pounding…” 

Jackson tried to sit up before the doctor quickly placed his hand on his chest.

“Don’t try it, you know better. You don’t wake up in a hospital and immediately try to sit up. That’s how you get hurt further.”

Jackson laid back down. He had seen it before in movies, someone always wakes up and falls right back down. Luckily he didn’t seem to have an IV drip on him or anything, though the tight sensation of an ace bandage around his head told him that something had clearly happened. The doctor swung his chair around and met his gaze.

“Alex says you were running like a madman at twelve a.m. and crashed into him before passing out. What on earth were you doing, Jackson?”

“Sorry, doctor….er…?”

“Harvey.”

“Doctor Harvey. I was chasing something that kept popping up in my house. Alex isn’t hurt is he?”

Alex, of all the people to crash into. Jackson was starting to feel like he was in a cheap love story, just without the actual love part. Harvey shook his head.  
“Just a bruise on his chest and nothing more. You do need to be more careful, though. If you had crashed into nearly anyone else you could have hurt them bad.”

At that moment the door to the examination room opened, and who should be there but Alex. 

“Hey, hope I’m not interrupting?”

“You’re fine, Alex. What do you need?”

Alex stepped in, closing the door behind him before taking a seat by Jackson’s bed. He sheepishly ran a hand through his hair before resting it on the back of his neck

“I just wanted to, uh, see if the farmer guy was ok after that. Can’t imagine running headfirst into these guys felt good!” 

He puffed his chest out and Jackson quickly averted his gaze. Yoba, was this boy really that vain?

“Haha! But seriously, you ok farmer guy?”

“I’m….fine. Swear on my right hand I’m fine.”

“Good! Well, if you’re ok then I’ll head out. See ya around, yeah?”

As Alex left, Harvey looked to Jackson with a confused expression. 

“Are you sick, Jackson? You’re all flushed.”

Jackson could have died right on that spot. 

\--------------

Despite a fairly rough start, the rest of Jackson’s week was fairly successful. He was able to clear more of his farmland, and even managed to start a decent stockpile of wood and stone. He figured that if Robin was going to need construction materials, he might as well keep them all gathered in one spot. He had also managed to get some construction work of his own done, having built a small storage chest and a makeshift scarecrow to keep a pesky flock of birds away from his parsnips. When Monday rolled around once more, he felt rather confident in this whole farming venture. Surprisingly, he hadn’t even caught sight of that damned blue creature since that run in with Alex, either. That’s part of why he was so surprised when he woke up Monday morning with Marnie, his southern neighbor, knocking on his door holding onto a puppy.  
“Marnie? Where’d that dog come from?”

Marnie’s face simply lit up as she cuddled the small white pup in her arms. “I found her wandering through my barn this morning and chased her all the way here. She ran right up to your door!”

The pup yipped and wiggled in her arms, trying to escape. With some serious wiggling she broke free and ran right up to Jackson.

“See!” Marnie clapped, “She likes you already!”

Jackson patted the puppy’s head, and scratched her behind the ears. She was surprisingly soft, almost feeling like velvet to the touch. He was so lost in the dog that he had almost missed the implication of Marnie’s words.

“Wait wait wait, hold up! Marnie you aren’t seriously implying that I keep her, are you?”

“Of course I am, why wouldn’t I be?” She put her hands to her hips. “Why after that chat we had the other day about your chicken thesis I figured you were set up to have quite a variety of animals here. You could use a farm dog.”

The pup yipped and pranced about Jackson’s legs, occasionally whipping the back of his leg with her tail. He sighed.

“Marnie….I don’t know, I don’t really have the spare funds for a dog and everything else I want to have here. I’m already having to set aside a budget for a silo so I don’t have to buy feed.”

Marnie stomped her foot in response. “Well then I suppose you won’t need to worry about funds when you don’t have a place to buy any animals!” A devious smile crossed her face. Jackson merely glared.

“Oh, you’re good. Too good. Alright, I’ll keep her around but I expect you to lend a hand every now and then, alright?”

“Alright! Now, what are you gonna name her?”

Truth be told, Jackson had always wanted a dog. His mom never let him have one, she claimed she was allergic. Despite that she never had an issue spending time with their neighbor, and he had three doberman pinschers! He already had the perfect name ready.

“Piper.”

“Oh, that’s a lovely name! Ok, Piper, you be a good doggie now. You hear?”

Piper looked up from chewing on Jackson’s bare foot and yipped with joy. Jackson scooped her up in his arms as Marnie headed back home. 

“Well, guess you’ll keep me from getting lonely, huh pup?”

Piper eagerly licked his face in response. He couldn’t help but laugh at the puppy’s infectious energy, and stopped laughing the second her tongue found its way into his mouth. Sputtering, he went back inside to prep for another day of work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told you it wasn't a daily upload! ....Granted I only missed a day but the point still stands! 
> 
> The first few chapters are the hardest to write because of how much you need to establish. Moving forward there's going to be more timeskips for sure and less focus on the more mundane parts of farming. For now it's important to establish Jackson's main relationships with other villagers and set up some early tensions. Think you've figured out the main conflict yet? You're probably wrong!
> 
> Regardless, thank you to everyone who has been reading so far, I really appreciate you all!


	5. Chicken Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jackson decides to enjoy his first town festival when a prank Sam pulls teaches him why people don't typically bring their pets. Luckily....or unluckily, he gets another encounter with Alex in the town's graveyard where the two finally hit it off as friends. That night, Jackson, Sam, Abigail, and Sebastian spend time with the stars. There, Jackson realizes that people take a lot for granted.

To say that Piper was a handful would be an understatement. The pup had caused more chaos for Jackson in the few days he had had her than he had caused for himself in his 23 years of life, and he had almost been arrested on three separate occasions. Despite this, she was completely fine when he introduced two tiny chicks from Marnie to the farm’s brand new coop.

Jackson gingerly cupped the tiny birds in his hand as he kneeled in front of the spotted pup, who looked up at him with eager eyes. “Ok, girl,” he said as calm as possible, “I need to see how well you do with farm animals. If you behave yourself, you’ll be able to spend all the time you want outside.” The pup merely wiggled with anticipation and barely managed to keep herself seated as Jackson revealed the tiny peeping creatures to her. She hopped up and sniffed the two before giving them a gentle lick. They peeped even louder in response.

“Ok, time for the real test.” Jackson set the two birds on the ground in front of Piper, watching her response. She trotted over to them and stood with pride over them, nipping at Jackson’s hand when he went to pick them back up. He smiled with pride at his pup. She was going to be an effective farm dog after all.

“Good girl, Piper. You did very well. Now, let’s get your leash ready. It should be festival time!”

The pup wiggled about in circles as Jackson threw on a sleeveless hoodie and grabbed her leash. Normally he wouldn’t wear something like this to town, but the hood provided enough space for both of the baby chicks to sit comfortably, and the last thing he wanted was to leave them behind. They were much too young and fragile! With dog successfully wrangled, Jackson and crew headed into town. 

The place had already been completely decorated by the time he arrived. Streamers of pastel blues and pinks hung from wooden stalls and tables laid out with a myriad of food and drink. Several villagers had already gathered, standing around the table and stands of carefully crafted spring flower bouquets. Jackson couldn’t help but marvel at the sight, it seemed like this town truly went all out for their celebrations. Pierre sat behind a booth along Jackson’s path, and waved him down as he passed.

“Farmer Jackson! Pleasure to see you made it out!” Pierre spoke with his usual customer service energy. Jackson couldn’t help but feel like it was the slightest bit patronizing in a way. “I’m selling special Egg Festival products and produce, care to take a look?”

“Sure, I guess. What do you have for me?”

“I have plush rabbits, flower displays, lawn flamingos, and all the strawberry seeds you could ever want!” Pierre placed each item on the table as he spoke, and Jackson’s eyes darted to the seeds.

“Strawberries? I LOVE strawberries!” Jackson exclaimed, grabbing several bags of seeds, “I’ll take them! My first few harvests have been good, so I have some extra cash to spare.”

Pierre simply smiled through the whole exchange. “I truly appreciate your patronage, Farmer Jackson. You’re what helps keep small town businesses alive.”

Jackson simply stowed his seeds in his pack and gave Pierre a nod before heading over to meet with Sam, currently engaged in an impromptu egg toss with Sebastian. He sidled alongside Abigail, who stood with her arms crossed in disapproval. 

“So,” Jackson said, gently removing the chicks from his hood, “Is it their goal to piss off Lewis as much as possible today?”

“You should’ve seen last year,” she stated, brushing a purple bang from her eyes, “They used rotten eggs that time and nailed him in the back of the head!”

Jackson chuckled in response. “They’re menaces to society, truly.”

“Yo, Jackson! Catch!” Sam shouted before hurling and egg Jackson’s way. Jackson immediately forced the two chicks into Abigail’s hands and grabbed the egg, which in turn broke in his hands. Abigail screamed in shock and dropped the chicks. They peeped in panic before vanishing off into the shrubs nearby. Jackson glared at Sam.

“Dude what the HELL were you thinking?”

“I wasn’t really thinking, I figured it’d be funny!”

Sebastian strutted over and slapped Sam in the back of the head. The taller boy recoiled in pain at the strike before punching Sebastian in the arm. 

“Um...Jackson?” Abigail squeaked from behind, shuffling in place, “Those birds are gone.”

“Birds?” Sebastian cocked an eyebrow as Jackson’s head began darting back and forth. His face was pale.

“I brought my two new chicks to the festival, I couldn’t leave them behind all alone! When you threw the egg I gave them to Abi, I didn’t expect her to drop them!”

“Hey! Don’t blame me, you just threw something fuzzy in my hand without any warning! What if it was a spider or something?”

“I’m not….I’m not trying to blame you,” Jackson’s breaths were heavy, “I’m sorry it sounded that way. I’m trying to blame the dimwit who chucked an egg at someone with no warning.”

“I said I was sorry!”

“No, you didn’t,” Sebastian corrected, “You just said you thought it was funny.”

“Ok then,” Sam sheepishy shuffled in place, “Jackson I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cause you to lose your birds.”

“I’ll forgive you later, for now everyone split up and help me find them. They’re babies, so they’re still noisy things.” He scooped Piper up into his arms before pointing to everyone in order. “Sam, you check by your house. Sebastian, near Pierre’s stall. Abigail, the main square. I’ll check Pam’s yard and by the tavern. Got it?” Everyone nodded in understanding. “Good, break up and meet back here if you find one.”

Jackson placed the pup back on the ground before taking off towards Pam’s yard, an open space covered in trash between her trailer and Gus’s tavern. He couldn’t help but worry, had a chick wound up here chances are good it might accidentally wander into Alex’s dog’s pen, and there was no guarantee the old mutt was as good with chicks as Piper. He dug through empty can after empty can, overturning newspapers and bottles desperately listening for a peep. Despite his best efforts, all he found were plastic eggs left out for the later egg hunt. With a sinking pit in his stomach he turned towards the dog’s pen, when out of nowhere Piper began pulling towards the nearby graveyard. Jackson looked to the dog with confusion, before letting her lead the way. 

Piper eventually slowed to a crawl and moved as if she was stalking something. Behind the shrubbery, Jackson could make out soft peeping and what sounded like someone talking. The duo burst through the shrubs to find Alex leaned over with a single chick in his hand. The man looked up in a panic as if he had been caught in the middle of a crime, before relaxing his shoulders upon seeing Jackson and the tiny pup. “Oh, it’s you farmer boy. Is this guy yours?”

Jackson sighed in relief and took a seat on the ground. He stuck a hand out and Alex gently placed the bird in it. “Yeah,” he said, running his right pointer down the chick’s head, “She’s one of the two I just got from Marnie. They…..accidentally got loose. Thank you so much for finding her!”

Alex laughed. “No problem, man. I was just walking over to the festival and heard her peeping. Didn’t expect to find a chicken around her though.”

“Yeah, haha….well I should really get going-”

“Hold on!” Alex grabbed his arm, “You know you’ve been acting really froggy around me, farmer boy. We’ve hardly gotten a chance to talk like at all. Why not take a moment, get to know each other a bit? I’ve been hoping for new guy friends in town. Haley is great and all but…” he sighed, “It’d be nice to have someone to talk dude stuff with. You know like…..what girls in town are hot and stuff.”

‘Oh Yoba he’s an aggressive heterosexual,’ Jackson thought as the chick in his hands began gnawing on his thumb. He sighed and decided to at least humor the guy, sitting back down as Piper curled up in his lap. “Fine, I can chat for a bit. Sam and the others are on the search for the other chick so I’m sure a minute or two won’t hurt. What do you want to know?”

Alex scratched his chin in thought. “Well…” he snapped his fingers, “I know! You come from the city, right? What’s that like?”

Jackson cocked his head to the side. “You’ve never been? You have a bus service!”

Alex shook his head. “Nah. Bus hasn’t worked in years. The one you took in was a special order from Lewis, most don’t even stop down here.”

Jackson couldn’t imagine living in such a small town for his entire life, never getting a chance to get out and experience the world. Now, granted, the world wasn’t all that great. After all he had turned away from it in favor of coming down here, but still it was important to experience it! “Well, it isn’t all that exciting. I was just a university student, so I didn’t really get to enjoy the city life or anything. I was mostly worried about….you know tests and stuff.”

“Tests and stuff still sounds better than being stuck in this place, seriously.” Alex frowned and shook his head. “One day I’m gonna get outta here and play gridball for the Zuzu City Tunnelers!”

That was….a lofty goal, and Jackson could barely stop himself from laughing at it. He had heard that from so many jock types at his school. So many people with big dreams of running off to Zuzu and playing for the Tunnelers, acting like that would solve all their problems. He knew that none ever actually wound up doing it, and those who tried always came back dejected. But….he also knew that it was pretty damn awful to shoot down someone’s dreams, so he faked a smile. 

“I’m sure you’ll do it. Hell, I’ll be your first fan when you do. Just promise to give Redwood Farms a shout-out sometime, huh? I’ll be your personal sponsor.” He laughed at the ridiculousness of it all, but Alex just got pumped up.

“Yeah! Damn dude, you’ll be in a great spot too, you’ll be able to tell all the tabloids about me someday. Haha! Finally someone in this stupid town that actually wants to support me. Thanks, dude, I really appreciate it. Hey, what did you say your name was again?”

“Jackson,” he said, brushing dirt from his jeans as he stood, “Jackson Varo.”

From town square Jackson heard what sounded like Pierre’s wife screaming and Sam apologizing profusely. Sounded like the other chicken had finally been located. “Sounds like I gotta go.”

Alex waved, “Don’t be a stranger, alright? Oh yeah, take my cell number and text me sometime, ok?”

Jackson didn’t need to be told twice, and quickly took his number down before darting off into the town square to save his chick. As he ran he couldn’t help but think to himself about the encounter. To a degree, his stupid puppy crush from before had faded away, after all he had been able to say more than three things without stuttering like a fool. Above all, though, he had made a new friend. Hopefully better than his current friend who was fishing a bird from the punchbowl. 

\------

That night, Jackson and his three troublemaking friends met up in the mountains near Sebastian’s place. Jackson decided to leave the animals at home this time, after all one day of chicken wrangling was enough for him. Abigail strutted up to the group with pride, showing off the straw hat she had won from the egg hunt.

“Like it?” she asked, tipping the brim. Sam threw a marshmallow at her. “Hey! It isn’t my fault I’m so good and you all stink!”

“Yeah, but it is your fault you watch Lewis hide them all. Come help with the fire.” Sebastian and Jackson were bent over a small fire pit. Jackson had filled it with spare stone and wood he had leftover from coop construction and Sebastian was trying to light it with his lighter, however no matter what they tried it seemed the fire wouldn’t catch. Abigail plopped herself beside Sam, who sat on a nearby log eating marshmallows from a bag, and watched the two struggle before Jackson finally shoved some old newspaper into the stack and the fire sparked to life.

“I dropped out of boy scouts when I was five, sorry.” Jackson laughed as he took a seat by Sam and watched the fire dance. Sam threw his head back and looked to the sky.

“What a great night! Look at all the stars up there! Ever see anything like this back home, Jakkie boy?”

Jackson shook his head. “The city was always too bright. We’d be lucky if we saw one or two stars at night. This…” he threw his own head back and stared into the sky, “This is beyond anything I ever expected to see. There’s so many…”

“It’s really not all that impressive. It’s there every night.” Sebastian stated.

“To you guys maybe, but for me this is unreal. I can almost trace out little pictures….like there! It looks like a chicken! Or...or there! That looks like Abigail!”

“That looths lithe a goat.” Sam said, shoving another marshmallow into his mouth. Abigail glared at him and punched him in the arm.

“Are you saying I look like a goat?!”

“No I-”

Another punch to the arm silenced Sam for a bit, and the four watched the sky above for what felt like hours. After an eternity of silence, Abigail spoke once more.

“Hey, Jackson? Why don’t you tell us a bit more about yourself? You did just move in not that long ago, and I can’t help but feel like we don’t really know much about you.”

“Well….” He hesitated. How much was too much to say? What wasn’t enough? “Er...well I’m from the city. I, uh….studied agriculture and communication in school. My favorite color is pink….I’m sorry I really don’t know what you guys want to know.”

“What do you do other than farm all day? You gotta have SOME kind of hobby!”

“Sam, shut up,” Sebastian said, impaling a marshmallow on a stick and placing it over the fire, “You’ll alert a bear or something.”

“Hobby?” Jackson thought for a moment, “Well...I played the bass for a while, but I didn’t bring it with me. I didn’t really think I’d have time, you know?”

Sam’s eyes practically had stars in him and he threw an arm around Jackson. “Man you should’ve said something sooner! Dude you could join a band with us, we could use a bassist!”

Jackson flinched. “Er….but I just said I don’t have my bass with me…”

“Don’t worry! Stop by tomorrow, I’ll lend you mine! It’ll be tight as hell!”

Jackson struggled against Sam’s arm before giving in. The boy was much stronger than he looked. “A-alright, I’ll borrow one of your’s. Let me go now, please?”

Sam released the farmer before impaling a marshmallow of his own. Sebastian turned to Jackson as he retrieved his marshmallow from the fire. “What do you think of the town? Regret moving here yet?”

Jackson shook his head furiously. “Of course not. Everyone here’s been super nice so far other than that Morris guy at Joja. I didn’t expect to find so many people supportive of a total stranger moving in and taking a patch of land.”

“I still miss exploring that place…” Abigail put her head in her arms.

“But, uh,” Jackson continued, “Yeah. Everyone has been great. I didn’t even expect to make so many friends so fast. I got you guys, Leah, hell earlier I got Alex’s number too-”

The three shot him a confused look. “Alex?” Sam asked, “You’re hanging around him?”

“Yeah? Is something wrong with that?”

Sebastian struck his stick into the ground beside him. “Eh, nothing’s wrong with Alex himself, it’s more miss princess he hangs around with that’s the issue.”

“What, Haley?” Jackson cocked his head, “I mean sure we didn’t really hit it off all that great but she didn’t seem horrible or anything.”

“Haley’s a plastic freak,” Abigail glared, “She’s always got something nasty to say about someone. People just give her what she wants because they don’t want to get on her bad side. Alex is the only one who will even hang around with her, and even he seems like he’s sick of it. Get close to him, though, and you risk pissing her off. He’s like her boytoy-”

“Wait are they dating?” Sam asked with big eyes, “I thought he turned her down?”

“Does it even matter? They might as well be at this point the way she hangs on him. He’s basically her property. Anyway, as I was saying,” Abigail continued, “You’re better off just leaving him be, Jackson. She isn’t worth the trouble. Besides, Alex is kind of a stuck up douche anyway.”

Jackson kept his head cocked. Yeah, Alex had seemed kinda stuck up, but nothing about him stood out as mean or the like. If anything he seemed like someone who needed a ‘normal’ friend to hang around with. He grimaced. “Ok, I’ll be careful, but I’m not going to promise anything. If anything,” Jackson stuck his right finger in the air, “I swear I’ll help Alex get away from her if she’s really that bad.”

The others just laughed, and Jackson felt himself turn bright red. “What?”

“Dude, you sound like some motivational speaker!” Sam laughed, “Going on about swearing and crap.”

“It’s just my thing, my mom always said that if you mean something you should swear on it.”

“Whatever dude.” Sam popped yet another marshmallow into his mouth. As he swallowed, he slowly began to turn green. 

“Sam, you ok?” Abigail asked.

The boy jumped up and ran off into the woods, the sound of vomiting following only a few moments later.

“Someone make sure he doesn’t get the marshmallow bag next time.” Sebastian grabbed the bag from Sam’s seat and started walking home. “It’s getting late anyway, I’m already getting eaten alive by mosquitos. Goodnight.”

“Night Seb, night Jackson. Good luck with your vow.”

Jackson gave a mocking sneer at Abigail as she left. Before he returned to the farm, he snuffed out the fire they had left and spent some time alone with his thoughts and the stars above. He couldn’t help but think about all the things people here took for granted just because that’s how things had always been. The stars were always like this for them…..no one new ever stepped in to change the social dynamic….If anything he was more certain than ever that he could help Alex and Haley out. He almost felt like a hero in a way, he was going to bridge a major social gap!

He shook his head. Hero was too much. For now he was just a farmer watching out for someone. As the last ember died, he returned home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really enjoyed writing this one. Like I said before, once the introductory stuff is done the more interesting chapters come out. Now I feel like I can better explore characters and plots without worrying as much about setting stuff up. Hope you all are interested in seeing what is to come!


	6. The Smartphone Hour Pt.1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jackson finally lives out Sam's dream of joining a band and nearly kills Sebastian for signing him up for social media. A friendly game of catch with Alex leaves him concussed.

Three am. It was three am when the network was finally set up. Jackson wasn’t entirely certain why he was asked to help with setting up a town router, nor was he certain why the town suddenly needed a router, but when Lewis showed up at his doorstep asking for help he just couldn’t bring himself to turn him down. As the last plug entered the wall of what remained of the old community center, he turned to Sebastian with an exhausted grin.

“This thing is strong enough to reach all of the main town, right?”

“Should be, I made sure to get the best one Joja had. Glad Lewis lent funds for it, no way in hell I was paying for it,” Sebastian lit a cigarette and let out a small puff of smoke, “Did Lewis ever tell you why he suddenly wanted town internet anyway?”

“It’s Lewis, he never explains anything to me.” Jackson stretched. Prying up loose boards to reach the electrical network in the building was harder than expected, and helping Sebastian troubleshoot and rewire the whole thing was even worse. “I don’t even understand why he decided this old place was where the thing had to go. It’s gonna fall apart here.”

“It’ll be fine, we reinforced the ceiling over it at least. Besides, haven’t you been doing repairs in your free time?”

Jackson looked around. Technically, Sebastian wasn’t wrong….he had been in here making repairs. However, he hadn’t really been the one doing the physical labor. About a week after he had moved in, Lewis showed him the old community center for the first time. That’s when Jackson first spotted the strange sprites, small apple shaped creatures that came to be known as the Junimo. After meeting with a rather….eccentric character that made his home in the forest, Jackson was granted the ability to understand the creatures. Despite the mystical nature of the whole event, it wasn’t something he particularly wanted to discuss with others in detail, he hardly wanted to believe it himself. Even now, however, he could catch green and blue blurs out of the corner of his eye as the Junimo scurried about. 

“Yeah….something like that. Welp!” Jackson clapped his hands together, “If we’re done here I’m going to bed. Good luck with the rest Sebastian!”

“Har har. You’re lucky Lewis is paying me. Sleep well.”

\---------------

‘Jakkie!’

The text lit Jackson’s phone up like a spotlight. Six am, and the sun had barely begun creeping into his ramshackle little home. With a groan he picked up the phone and texted back.

‘What’

‘So blunt!’

‘Its morning. What do u want’

‘I wanted to let you know I found your new tweeter. You never told me you signed up!’

Jackson cocked an eyebrow. He hadn’t signed up, not to his knowledge. Sure enough, though, a quick search revealed that he indeed had an account, albeit an empty one. 

“Sebastian…” he mumbled to himself.

‘Well I just found out about it myself so looks like we’re both learning’

‘Well I followed it. You better actually use it so I can see what’s going on!’

‘Ok. I’d love to chat more but I gotta get started on work. I’ll post pics or something later, hbt?’

‘Aaaaah! I can’t wait!’

How she was so perky at this hour was beyond him. Jackson had been at this gig for nearly a month and waking up at six every morning still didn’t come natural. The work also just kept getting harder on top of that, both chickens had begun to lay small eggs and the fields had doubled in size from the strawberries he bought from Pierre. Luckily, Piper was ever the supportive farm dog and always stuck by his side through the various tasks he had to perform daily. After Jackson had finished nailing the last fencepost in around his new chicken yard, he left the pup to guard the birds as he headed into town to personally kill Sebastian. 

“Jackson!” Robin said when he had finally arrived up at their home in the mountains, “Anything I can do for you? I’ve got blueprints I’m more than ready to work on you with!”

“Where’s Sebastian?”

“Sebby? He’s over at Sam’s right now.”

“Gotcha. I’ll be back later this week about the prints, by the way, I’m looking to start on a barn next. See you then.”

He gave her a brisque nod before leaving south towards Sam’s house. Upon arrival the telltale sound of an electric guitar confirmed that at least one person was home. Jackson found both Sam and Sebastian in Sam’s room. Sam was shredding away at his guitar while Sebastian halfheartedly tapped at an electric piano. All eyes were on Jackson when he slammed the door behind him, and Sam immediately put the guitar down. Jackson pointed an accusatory finger at Sebastian.

“Why’d you sign me up for Tweeter?”

“Huh? Oh, sorry I was making a test account to see how fast the router was and I already had my own. I didn’t think it’d be an issue.”

“It’s….ugh!” Jackson struggled to find the words, “It’s just...I...uh sorry I’m not….Listen I just didn’t want a public social media is all. There’s….really no one outside of the valley I want to reconnect with aside from Olivia, so…”

“I can just delete it, you know. I used a burner email.”

Jackson sighed and hunched over. “N-no, as much as I’d rather not use it I kinda already made a promise to Olivia that I would. You’re gonna have to show me how to use the privacy settings later, though.”

“Until then!” Sam popped in, balanced on one foot, “Jackson! You promised you’d show me some bass skills. Time to deliver!” 

Sam shoved a beat up bass guitar into Jackson’s hands. It had definitely seen better days, but a quick strum proved that it still worked. He played a few quick riffs, going off of his rusty memory of the instrument before going into full basslines of a few popular songs. Sam stared with wide eyes before throwing a fist into the air and cheering.

“WOOP! We got a bassist, Sebastian!”

“Yeah, you aren’t half bad Jackson. That was pretty cool.”

Jackson blushed, placing the guitar on the ground. “It’s nothing much, honestly. I just fiddled with the bass between schoolwork was all.”

“Well you got some talent, so I formally invite you to join our as-of-right-now unnamed band! As your first duty as a bandmate, you get to decide what genre of music we play!”

Jackson cocked an eyebrow and turned to Sebastian. “Uh….why am I suddenly deciding?”

“We’ve been stuck all day,” Sebastian sighed, “Neither of us can agree on what to play.”

“Well,” Jackson scratched his temple, “How about…..high energy dance music? That way you’re always moving during rehearsal and people are more inclined to actively participate in the media? That’s one of the major communications things I learned, have the audience exist as an active participant in the media you create.”

“Dude I have NO idea what you’re on about, but I totally dig it!” Sam threw a hand against Jackson’s back, nearly knocking him over, “Sebastian?”

“Sounds good to me. This keyboard was designed for that kind of stuff anyway.”

“Then it’s decided! Jackson, welcome to the band. We practice every Friday from….whenever we feel like it to whenever we feel like it. We’ll message you on Tweeter when it starts, yeah?”

Jackson couldn’t help but feel like he was being forced to keep this stupid account, but begrudgingly agreed. It seemed to make Sam happy at least. At Sam’s request, he took the old bass and politely excused himself. Stepping outside, he took out his phone and checked his email. Sure enough, Sebastian had already sent the login info to him. He spent several minutes walking and fiddling with the application before he found himself colliding into something solid.

“Woah! We can’t keep meeting like this, Jackson!”

Alex again. He stuck out a hand and helped Jackson off the ground, laughing as he finally found his footing. Jackson checked the guitar, and after assessing it to be no more beat up than it already was, greeted the other man.

“Sorry about that, I was just a little distracted. Sebastian signed me up for some stupid website-”

“Tweeter? Yeah, I saw your account earlier! I went ahead and followed you, I just made an account myself!”

Sure enough, checking his notifications showed that an @alex_gridball had in fact followed him. He really needed to get Sebastian to show him privacy settings later. 

“Hey you busy?” Alex continued, “I’m headed down to the beach. I was wondering if you might want to toss the ball around for a bit or something. I told you before I needed someone to play catch with.”

“Sure, I guess. I’m not busy at the moment...but I haven’t really played before so don’t expect me to be all that great.”

Alex laughed again as the two crossed the tiny stone bridge that led to the beach. Jackson removed his shoes as the arrived, feeling the cool sand between his toes. In contrast to the first few days he had spent in Pelican Town, the weather was surprisingly pleasant. A gentle breeze blew from the sea, carrying the taste of salt with it as it tousled Jackson’s hair. Alex jogged over to a firepit, ball in hand. “Go long!” he shouted before tossing the ball Jackson’s way. In a panic, Jackson looped the guitar onto his back and lept into the air, barely grabbing the ball before tumbling back down onto his chest.

“Man! Nice catch! I thought you said you weren’t good at this?”

Jackson sputtered. “I’m not.” He carefully stood, brushing sand off of his shirt and placing the guitar off to the side somewhere safe. “But I guess I’m picking it up faster than I thought!” 

He pulled his arm back and chucked the ball back Alex’s way with all his might. Without any effort at all Alex leapt up and grabbed it out of the air before sending it back Jackson’s way. With a small fumble, Jackson caught it once more and sent it back. The two continued like this in silence for a bit, with only the occasional grunt or laugh to break the silence. Finally, Alex spoke.

“So, Jackson, what brought you here of all places? Like why’d you come?”

“Well,” Jackson replied, catching and returning the ball once more, “My ab-grandpa’s old farm meant a lot to me. I didn’t want it going to waste, and he left it as my inheritance and all.”

“He left you that dusty old place as inheritance? Seems more like a chore to me.”

“Well, yeah. In a way it kinda is. But at the same time it isn’t. I dunno that doesn’t make sense does it?”

Alex gave a blank expression in return. “Nope, not really.”

“Well,” Jackson thought for a moment as the ball collided with his chest, “It’s like….there’s someone you cared about a lot and they’ve left you a precious gift. You want to cherish that, right? You want to see it healthy or well cared for, right? Hell you might even have shared memories of spending time with this thing with that person. That’s what the farm is to me. Yeah it’s run down and isn’t at all like it should be, but if I put the work into it I can make it something my grandad can be proud of, and something that I can show the world with pride.”

Jackson returned the ball, with a small sense of pride in his chest. He looked to his catch partner, who had gone strangely silent. For a moment, he almost swore he saw a small tear in Alex’s eye, but it was gone the second the man caught the ball. 

“That sounds really nice at least, haha! Like I told you last time my only goal is getting outta here and joining the Tunnelers, going pro is basically all that matters right now.”

‘Well at least he’s honest,’ Jackson thought, ‘A bit direct, but honest.’

“And man this town is gonna change when that happens. Paparazzi, tourists, you name it! I’ll be a real big shot type and really bring something great to this boring old town. Just you wait!”

Alex lobbed the ball back to Jackson. This time, however, Jackson’s catch was off and the ball met him square in the nose. He fell over like a sack of rocks instantly, and Alex rushed over.

“AH! DUDE! I’m SO sorry, are you ok?”

Jackson cupped his nose. He tried to stand up, but the dizziness in his head kept him down. He muttered for a bit before finally forming coherent words.

“F-fine! Y-yeah! Really fine! Totally fine! I’m fine!”

He rose to unsteady feet, and couldn’t help but think that time with Alex seemed to consistently be leading to blunt force head trauma. Uncupping his hands he saw the amount of blood that had come from his nose and passed out. He woke up in Dr. Harvey’s office once more to the doctor berating Alex for being careless.

“You really need to aim that ball better when you throw it, or at LEAST adjust your strength for your partner! Honestly, Alex, I understand that you want to make it big and you want to show off but you won’t make it anywhere when you fail to keep other people in mind!”

Alex sheepishly apologized as Jackson sat up in bed. His head was still spinning, and Harvey immediately ran over to assess him. After a quick appraisal it was decided that Jackson needed to stay the night to check for a concussion. 

“Wh-what about t-the farm?” Jackson stuttered, “I-I need t-t-to let the ch-chickens back i-inside. P-Piper won’t d-do well without me either.”

“Alex can take care of it all as an apology. I’m more worried about this sudden stutter, that could be a sign of more damage.”

“It’s all good, Jackson,” Alex smiled, “I’ll take care of everything tonight, you just chill here. Hey, I’ll post pictures to Tweeter to show how good things go, ok?”

Jackson furrowed his brow and grimaced before finally giving in. “Alright. Stay the night, though. Piper can’t go a whole night by herself.”

\---------------

Alex couldn’t help but feel like he was scary good at this farming thing. The chickens had no issue with him picking them up and placing them in the coop, and that little white dog of Jackson’s had taken a liking to him already! Of course, that could be due in part to Dusty’s smell being on his pants, but still! Dogs know a good person when they meet one!

He had just thrown himself out in Jackson’s bed when he heard the dog yipping at something in the corner. He sat up, eyes scanning the room, when he caught sight of a small blue blob in the corner of the room. The dog continued to yip at it, and it didn’t appear to move. Alex stood up and kneeled beside the dog, stroking her back as the two stared at the thing in the corner. After a moment he shot Haley, his best friend, a text.

‘Hey you might wanna come over to the farmer’s place.’

‘Ew, why?’

‘There’s something in here and I might need a hand.’

‘Gross, get the farmer to help.’

‘Can’t he’s at Harvey’s.’

‘Ugh, fine. Be right there.’

Five minutes later, a gentle knock came from the door. Haley stood on the porch, immaculately done up as always. Alex invited her in, but she stopped in the doorframe when she caught sight of the blob. 

“EWW! Alex, why the heck did you invite me to help?”

Alex shrugged. “I wanna catch it.”

“And how am I supposed to help with that?!”

“I’m gonna chase it to the door, and you catch it with this bowl!” He proudly presented her with a clear glass bowl he grabbed off the table. It had been filled with small candies, but they were now scattered across the floor. Haley gingerly took it in her hands and glared at it as if it were a spider. 

“Gross. Absolutely not. I’m not helping that brat of a farmer.”

“Oh come on! What’d he ever do to you anyway?”

Haley huffed and stomped her heel. “I was being extremely polite to him when he first moved in and he called me ‘tetas con patas’! What does that even mean?”

Alex chuckled. Haley smacked his arm. “What’s so funny?”

“It means ‘tits with legs.’”

Haley screamed and dropped the bowl, causing it to shatter and send the dog scrambling onto the bed. There she dug under the covers and hid, shaking. The blob, in turn, made a dart for it and jumped between Haley’s legs and out the door, which only caused her to scream more and leap into Alex’s arms. She glared at him with daggers in her eyes as he set her down.

“I’m not helping here anymore. Don’t call me for this stuff.” She swung her bag across her shoulder and began strutting off. Before she left the porch she turned back with a sly grin. 

“Oh, by the way,” she said with a slight poison in her words, “Don’t forget about starting that Tweeter account for me. I want it done before Sunday, if you could.”

Alex gave a quick nod before heading back inside. He spent the rest of the evening cleaning glass and candy from the floor and coaxing the poor dog from out under the bed. He couldn’t help but worry a bit, he sure hoped that the farmer…..that Jackson wouldn’t be too mad about the bowl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspiration hits at the strangest times. I wasn't actually planning on writing this until Saturday, but when words want out they want out. This is probably my longest chapter to date, so sorry about that! A few other notes:
> 
> 1\. I don't really plan to focus on Community Center stuff, so it will be mentioned in passing at most. While I know the subplot in game is super interesting, adding it alongside the stuff I plan to focus on will get confusing and crowded.   
> 2\. I've always headcanoned Alex as having Hispanic heritage of some kind, so I write him with some passing familiarity with Spanish. He isn't fluent, but he picks up a decent bit  
> 3\. There will be a part 2 later on, but that one will be WAY memier than this one. This one is still fairly serious overall.


	7. Farmhands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Jackson's concussion, the farm is left with no one to care for it. Enter Pelican Town's troublemakers: Sam, Sebastian, and Abigail, to save to day. The three of them take watch of the farm, and come face to face with a dastardly foe.

Jackson was mad about the bowl. 

He had already not been the biggest fan of Haley before the bowl incident. His first run in with her involved her insulting his looks to his face and him retorting with an insult he knew she didn’t understand. Having a Spanish background was handy when insulting people. Needless to say, though, he and Haley had not become fast friends by any stretch of the imagination. And now she had brought ruin into his household! Jackson would certainly get back at her…

….If his head wasn’t pounding. 

Dr. Harvey had implied from the start that the concussion was more severe than he was saying, and he was right. At his orders, Jackson was stuck in the bed for at least a week. As a result, absolutely nothing was getting done on the farm. It took only a day for him to finally get antsy and break a rule, using his phone to text Sam for help.

‘Hey’  
‘I need a favor’

‘Dude! Aren’t you not supposed to be using your phone rn?’

‘I know this’ll be quick. I need some farm help.’

‘Oh yeah, you can’t work it rn can you?’

‘Yeah Harvey said ‘no physical labor’’  
‘I gotta be in this bed in the dark for a week.’

‘Well at least you’ll be up for the Flower Dance next week.’  
‘Be right over with help!’

Jackson placed the phone face down on the side table next to the bed and rubbed his temple. Yoba he hated feeling useless. Hopefully a single day of neglect wouldn’t be too much to handle, he only had a small strawberry field and two chickens to care for after all. Piper was a non issue, he managed to get up to feed her regularly and she simply stayed curled up in bed keeping him company all day. He lay stroking her back when a knock at the door sent him doubled over in pain.

“Come in, please stop knocking!”

Several attempted hushed whispers came from the other side of the door before Sam carefully opened it with a guilty look. Piper hopped off the bed and sat in front of him expectantly, and he scooped her up into his arms. Abigail and Sebastian pushed past the two and joined them in the small room. It felt noticeably cramped with four people in it, and for the first time Jackson sincerely thought about asking Robin for help expanding it. 

“So,” Sebastian said, hands in his pockets, “What all do you need us to do?”

“Uh, well,” Jackson sat up to better see his guests, “First off thanks so much for actually helping me out. I was really worried this place was going to fall apart with no one watching it for a week.”

“Hey no problem, that’s what bros are for!” Sam smiled as the wiggly puppy in his arms attempted to lick at his face.

“Regardless, I’ll definitely be giving you all a cut of whatever profits come in while you work here. I think the math was something like….” Jackson put a palm to his forehead. Yoba he hated math. “...17% for each of you? It won’t be much but it’ll be something. I’ll pass more along once I’m back on my feet.”

“Jackson, listen, you’re super sweet to offer that but-”

“No,” Jackson held his palm out, “Stop right there. This isn’t charity, it’s just compensation. There’s three of you, but it’ll still be hard work. The strawberries will all need individual watering daily and an inspection of their leaves and roots. If you see any damaged or dead leaves you need to remove them immediately, and if you see any pests you need to make sure they’re chased off properly. Both chickens will need eggs collected and fresh hay in their feeder. Someone will need to cut it from the grass you see around if we run out. After you do that, both will need to be weighed and checked for health issues, and once that’s done you can let them out into the yard I built to hold them. I’m not going to make you guys cut down trees or break rocks or anything, that’s too much. Once you’re done with the chickens just let me know how things went, and you’re free to go.”

Abigail dutifully wrote each direction down on a small notepad. Once Jackson finished, she flipped it closed and placed her hands on her hips. “No worries, Jackson! We’ve got this thing handled!”

The trio turned to leave before Jackson called once last thing out.

“By the way, I’ll have some snacks in here later for you guys. Don’t miss it!”

\-----------------

To say that Sebastian didn’t take to farming well would easily be the understatement of the century. Sam and Abigail had stuck him with chicken care while they dealt with the crops, and he initially agreed thinking he had won the easiest job.

Then he learned the unfortunate truth. Chickens poop. A lot. 

Jackson had failed to mention this earlier, and Sebastian had a sneaking suspicion that this was to keep them from being scared away, though the large shovel leaning against the coop from the outside had already raised his suspicions. The telltale smell of manure only made things worse as he grabbed the shovel and moved the droppings outside. 

“I’m gonna kill him. I’m gonna kill him, Sam, and Abigail together,” he muttered to himself as the two chickens awoke and proceeded to cluck as if their lives depended on it. Not even his most pointed glare was able to quiet the fowl, and Sebastian resigned himself to his stinky, noisy venture. Luckily it was over within a half an hour, with all eggs collected and both birds properly cared for. He opened the coop’s chicken door to let the birds roam about freely as Sam dashed over pale as a mine ghost.

“SEB! SEEEEEEB!”

“What is it?” Sebastian couldn’t help but chuckle a bit at how out of breath Sam was after such a short sprint.

“THERE WAS….SOMETHING IN THE STRAWBERRIES!”

“What, like a rat or something?”

“NO! ….I MEAN YEAH BUT SOMETHING ELSE ATE THE RAT!”

This immediately wiped the grin off Sebastian’s face. “Something ate the rat….like right in front of you? Nah I’m not falling for that, this is just another stupid prank isn’t it.”

Sam stomped his foot, causing the nearby chicken to dart away clucking. “This isn't a prank, I swear! Some blue thing ate a whole-ass rat right in front of me and Abby!”

“Fine, fine,” Sebastian said with a smug grin, “Show me this ‘rat-ass eating blue thing’. Just know that I’m not coming back tomorrow if it’s just a damn prank.”

“Not a prank! Come on!” Sam grabbed Sebastian by the arm and dragged him to the strawberry field where Abigail stood with a stick in hand, brandished like a sword. She took a swing when Sam walked up behind her, and barely missed him as he ducked leading to the stick connecting with the side of Sebastian’s face.

“Ah! Sorry, Seb, I swear I didn’t mean to!” She turned to Sam with daggers in her eyes. “Don’t scare me like that!”

“Sorry! Sorry! I didn’t mean to. Any luck finding that thing?”

She shook her head. “No dice so far. It ran off towards what looked like a rundown greenhouse earlier, and I lost sight of it. I’ve been watching here in case any rats show up and it comes back out.”

“You shittin’ me?” Sebastian shook his head. “Abby, Sam really got you in on this stupid prank too?”

“Not a prank, we really did see some blue thing lurking around here, and it really did eat a rat in front of us. It was totally gross!”

“Yeah, and besides! You heard Jackson mention seeing something like this in his house before too, didn’t you?”

Sebastian thought for a moment. “Yeah, I guess he has mentioned it before, but I always thought he was just misremembering after crashing into Alex that night.”

“Well,” Abigail started marching towards the greenhouse ruins, “He wasn’t. That thing’s real, and I’m gonna catch it!”

“And what exactly do you think you’re going to catch it with, huh? You’ve got a stick.” Sebastian crossed his arms and begrudgingly followed Abigail towards the greenhouse. “Besides you don’t have a clue about what this thing is anyway.”

“Yeah I do! I totally do! I saw something like it in the mines!”

“The mines? Abby if your dad knew you were in there-”

“Shut up, Sam, I know. Don’t say anything to him or,” she pointed to Sebastian, “I’ll make sure your mom finds out about your ‘vase’, and,” she jabbed her finger in Sam’s face, “I’ll make sure your mom finds out about your ‘special folder’. If I go down, so do you two.”

“Ma’am yes ma’am.” Sam gave a mocking salute.

“Anyway,” Abigail continued, “I saw something like this guy in the mines, but the ones I saw were green. If we beat him with this stick enough he’ll get real tired, and we can….I dunno grab him or something.”

“Well thought out plan.”

“Yeah, Seb, I know. If you’ve got a better one start talking, otherwise this is the plan we’re going with.”

Sebastian threw his hands up in defeat as the three arrived at what was once a greenhouse, but now stood as nothing more than a pile of broken glass and splintered wood. Off to a corner, barely obscured by a fallen beam, sat the blue devil they were hunting. It was peacefully chomping at a rat with nonexistent teeth, pulling the animal into its amorphous body with surprising care. It turned to the trio as they approached, the rat’s tail whipping against it. They stared at one another in silence before Abigail charged forward screaming with her stick raised high over her head. As she attempted to bring the stick crashing down on the creature, it jumped out of the way and dropped the rat’s tail on her shoe. She squealed and leaped back, tripping over a fallen chunk of wood. Sam barely grabbed her before she hit the ground.

“Dammit, it’s faster than the ones in the mine.” Abigail brushed herself off and retrieved her dropped stick, attempting to reclaim her composure. 

“Any new ideas?” Sebastian took out a cigarette and lit it, taking a deep puff, “Because as it stands we’ve got one rat killer hopping around and our hit rate sits at a solid 0%. I think the brainless slime thing is winning.”

“Shut up! We just need a new plan of attack.”

Sam pointed at Sebastian’s cigarette. “What about that?”

“What? Sebastian’s black lung in the making?”

Sam laughed and shook his head. “No, no, what about his lighter? Can’t we start a small fire and limit the thing’s escape options?”

Sebastian sighed, exhaling a puff of smoke. “Sam I’m amazed at how close you hinge on actually being brilliant sometimes.”

“Uh...thanks I think?”

 

Sebastian simply shook his head. “We don’t want to start any fire here. Not only would that successfully piss Jackson off, but we don’t even have a way to put it out. That water can barely does its job as is.”

Abigail looked around in frustration before settling her eyes on the face of a small nearby cliff. She pointed her stick at a well placed gap in the wall, and with a twinkle in her eye, she began to strut over. 

“Guys, I found it. We’re gonna corner it in there. Sam, you chase it over, Sebastian, you block it in.” Abigail patted the stick against her palm, a devious grin on her face. “I’ll whack it from there.”

Sebastian and Sam exchanged a quick, uncertain look, before simply shrugging. Sebastian joined Abigail by the cave’s entrance as Sam stumbled around the greenhouse, searching for the slime.

“Here critter critter...here b- GAH!” He shrieked as the creature jumped onto his face after he overturned a beam. “OFF OFF GET IT OFF! YOBA IT’S GONNA EAT ME!”

“Stumble this way, Sam!” Sebastian shouted back, doing his best to avoid laughing at his friend’s misfortune.

“I’M TOO YOUNG TO DIE! AUGH!”

Sebastian rolled his eyes and simply grabbed Sam by the arm and led him to the cave directly as the taller boy flailed about aimlessly. Abigail whacked the slime off his face and sent it rolling across the floor as Sam breathed a deep sigh of relief. She stood in front of it, keeping it cornered.

“You’re done you slippery bastard, I’m gonna do you in!”

“We’re just knocking it out, remember? Not killing it?”

Abigail glanced back at Sebastian with righteous fury. He threw his hands up in innocence and went back to blocking the exit. Abigail prepped to bring the stick down when they heard a voice from outside.

“Hey, you guys ok? Piper was yipping at the door and I heard screaming?”

Jackson was back, pup in arms and a stylish pair of shades on his face. He pushed by Sam and Sebastian to see what was the matter inside the cave, and laid his eyes on the panicked slime in the corner.

“Abigail! Leave that thing alone!”

Abigail lowered her stick in confusion as Jackson dashed over to the slime, one hand on his forehead. “Why? Isn’t this the thing that’s been causing problems?”

“Yeah,” Jackson said, looking the slime over, “And it’s also been eating the rats I’ve had around here. It wasn’t until I chased it away the first time that I realized I even had a rat problem.”

The others simply cocked an eyebrow in confusion. Abigail ‘sheathed’ her stick into her belt loop.

“Wait, so you want to keep this thing around after all?”

“Yeah, it may look funky but it’s about five times better than dealing with rats and crap.” Jackson slowly reached his hand over to the slime, placing Piper on the ground. She merely watched with bright, curious eyes as Jackson was finally able to place his hand on the slime’s head….body…..thing. “There now, no more reason to run. Here, take some water.” Jackson took a plastic water bottle from his bag and poured it atop the slime, who wriggled about like a happy bowl of jello. “There! Stick around and there’ll be more where that came from, ok?”

The slime’s eyes almost seemed to shine as Jackson placed the creature on his shoulder before turning back to the group.

“Dude….you did not just tame that thing,” Sam said in disbelief.

Sebastian maintained his look of confusion. “Yeah, no one’s ever tamed any of the monster things that live around here. You aren’t seriously thinking of keeping that?” 

“Well, yeah. He is what’s kept the rats away after all, and he’s kinda cute.”

“Yeah, you’re right there.” Abigail hesitantly placed a finger on the slime’s head and stroked it. “Sorry for trying to kill you little guy….hey is he gonna have a name?”

Jackson scratched his chin. “Hmm….Chicle. He kinda reminds me of a chewed piece of gum. Anyway, Harvey would kill me if he knew I was out here right now, and it looks like everything is taken care of. You all should come on in, I made some sandwiches.”

The three simply nodded in response as everyone piled back inside and gathered around Jackson’s single table. There they recounted the day’s events, mostly focusing on Sam’s embarrassing run in with Chicle on his face, as Chicle and Piper chased one another through the house. Sam, however, seemed distracted with his phone. Finally, Sebastian waved a hand in his face.

“Yo, earth to Sam, normally I’m the antisocial one. What’s got you so distracted?”

Sam placed his phone down on the table and threw an arm behind his head. “Hehe, sorry sorry I just got distracted by this Tweeter account I found.”

Abigail raised an eyebrow. “Another dumb meme account? Don’t you follow enough of those?”

Sam shook his head. “Nah, it’s some kind of confessions thing I think? It’s @stardew_truths….see look at this! ‘Pierre is a lying thief who takes what you sell and marks it up for a quick buck’. Or or this one, ‘Elliott is a greasy, hopeless shut in’. These are wild!”

“If by wild you mean kinda cruel, then yeah,” Jackson frowned, “Like I can kinda get the goal with the Pierre post but that Elliott post just seems downright cruel.”

“Who the hell do they think they are talking about my dad like that anyway?!” Abigail slammed a fist down on the table, causing Jackson to wince. “Yeah he can be shitty but he’s my dad, no one gets to talk about him that way!”

“I wonder who’s running it?” Sam sighed, “It looks like they just wanna air dirty laundry and shit for followers. It already has twenty….plus one.”

“You followed?” Jackson cocked his head.

“Yeah, I think at least one of us needs to. Who knows who’s next to wind up here anyway?”

“Yeah….” Jackson leaned back in his chair. He could already feel that sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as a bead of sweat rolled down his temple. ‘More stupid, petty drama?’ he thought. He shook his head. Certainly the people here were more mature than people at his old school, and definitely more mature than his stupid ex. Still, he couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t just going to go away if he ignored it.

“Well….anyway,” Sebastian finally said, “That’s one day down. Here’s hoping the next six are less eventful.” He raised a glass of water, and the others followed suit.

“Thanks again for the help guys, you’re all pretty awesome to help a dude you barely know. 

“Hey, you’re a friend now, Jackson!” Abigail smiled, “And friends stick together, even if slimes try to mess us all up.”

The four laughed as they finished their lunches together. Jackson waved them all off as they headed back into town, and as he returned to bed he couldn’t help but find that prior gross feeling fade away. He had finally made a good group of friends, and that was something to be proud of. He smiled as Piper and Chicle curled up and settled on his chest. It looked like life in Pelican Town was going to turn out alright after all. Looks like he was going to be able to keep grandpa’s inheritance money after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly chapters like these are some of my favorite to write. I like changing perspectives, and I like writing pure slice of life that doesn't necessarily forward the main plot. Plus any excuse to write about this trio is a good one to me, so definitely expect more of them in the future.


	8. Coronas de Flores

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day of the Flower Dance arrives, and Jackson is reminded of some past trauma. Alex finds him at the beach tide pools, and after hearing his story, convinces him to come along to the dance anyway.

Spring 24th was the day a strange tranquility fell over the valley, and Jackson couldn’t help but feel it in the air the moment he woke up. It even seemed to extend to the animals, as Piper was much quieter today than before and the chickens hardly made a peep as he cleaned their coop. Sam and the others had finished their tenure on the farm on the 23rd, and after a quick review from Harvey, Jackson was approved to be back on his feet. He was glad for it, too. Anything was better than being stuck indoors all day long. Still, he couldn’t shake the idea that he was forgetting something.

Part of him thought that the strange tranquility came from the overcast sky. Rain had always relaxed him growing up. He loved to sit by the window with a cup of coffee and watch the drops pattern the windowpane as the fell along its surface. He decided to leave the chickens indoors today, if it did decide to rain he’d rather them not spend the time outside and risk getting sick. Same went for Piper, no need to have her running about and getting muddy. Chicle, on the other hand, was free to roam to his heart’s content. Water seemed to make the gooey little guy happy. In fact, Jackson was just about to let him out when he noticed a letter left in his mailbox. 

‘Dear Jackson,

‘Today we are all getting together for the Flower Dance. If you can find a partner, you may even want to participate in the dance yourself! There’s a little clearing beyond the forest to the west of town where we hold the dance. Arrive between 9am and 2pm if you’re interested!

‘-Mayor Lewis’

That’s what it was! Jackson smacked a palm against his forehead. Sam had mentioned this last week, something about him being lucky that he’d be better in time for this thing. The fact that Sam was so excited for this caught Jackson somewhat by surprise. Sure Sam was the outgoing type, but a stuffy formal dance didn’t seem like much of that boy’s speed, and the whole thing felt awfully….romantic. Jackson couldn’t shake the feeling like this was the equivalent of Stardew prom in a way. After all, a yearly formal dance to celebrate flowers and spring wasn’t necessarily a platonic event. Jackson crumpled up the letter and tossed it into the shipping bin. Despite telling himself that he’d participate in all the town events, he wasn’t ready to hop into something this lovey dovey. Today he’d avoid the forest and forage about a bit. As he strolled into town, he decided to head down to the tide pools he had discovered a week or so back down at the beach and hunt for seashells and urchins. They seemed to turn a halfway decent profit after all!

Taking a stick in hand, he crouched down near the pools and began sifting through the sand and water for signs of life. As gentle raindrops fell from above, tiny fish darted too and fro away from his stick. From the looks of it, the tide hadn’t really left him any prizes behind. Aside from a single, albeit beautifully patterned shell, there wasn’t really much of note in the pools today. Sighing, he packed his bag and began to head back home when he heard someone shout his name from the bridge.

“Yo, farmer guy!”

Jackson’s head snapped towards the bridge to see a familiar green mound waving to him. He waved back as Alex began jogging down to him.

“I thought you were going to be at that dance thing, Alex. What are you down here for?”

“Lewis asked me to come find you, we were wondering where you were!” he said with a dumb smile. Jackson cocked an eyebrow.

“Lewis? Why does he care if I’m there or not?”

“Lewis said he wanted everyone down this year, and he didn’t want you to miss out on your first Flower Dance. Why are you digging in the sand anyway, it’s raining!”

Jackson sat back down and poked his stick about in the pool. “No reason really, I just didn’t really feel like going to a dance is all.” 

Alex threw himself down next to Jackson and watched as he dug about in the sand. “Ah c’mon but you can’t miss it! I mean yeah it’s kinda stuffy and awkward and crap but it’s town tradition and all. Plus, I’m sure a good looking guy like you has charmed a girl here already, you’d probably have your choice of chicks to dance with!” Alex playfully punched Jackson’s arm. Jackson, however, found himself turning a deep scarlet red once again.

“N-nah, I haven’t really made a lot of friends or anything yet. I-I mean I spoke with Leah a few times but that’s it.”

Alex threw up an eyebrow and gave a knowing grin. “Aha! So you’re making the moves on the artist girl, eh?”

Jackson focused on a single fish that swam about aimlessly in the water below. He watched as it swam up to a sandy wall before turning around and swimming up to another, mindlessly repeating the cycle over and over. The poor thing was trapped with nowhere to go. Jackson almost wished he could throw it back into the ocean, but knew that no matter how hard he tried he’d probably never catch it. His focus was broken when Alex decided to pat his back and he found himself almost tumbling into the water.

“So are you and Leah gonna be a thing, or….?”

“No! I-I mean…” Jackson raised his head and tried to give a smirk. It wound up reading more as a grimace. “Nah, we’re not gonna be anything….like that. Gotta k-keep your options open, yeah?” He sighed and shook his head as his stomach twisted itself into a knot. He was going to have to leap over this hurdle eventually, and it was better if he started getting it over with now. He looked Alex in the eyes. “Can I tell you something, something kinda personal?”

Alex’s smile vanished and he looked on with curious eyes. “Sure thing, man. Go ahead, I’ll keep it between us.”

“I-I’m not really...I mean I’m not going to...Yoba what the hell are the words I’m looking for!”

“Take your time!”

Jackson took a deep breath and shook his head in frustration. “I’m not really….ready to date anyone. Y-yeah, that’s it!” He grimaced, so close yet so far. “So….back in college I dated someone for a long time. Like, three years long. I was actually engaged to hi-them. I bought the ring and everything.” He took a chain out of his shirt that he had kept hidden. Hooked through was a sterling silver ring with an intricately carved pattern of flowers across its surface. Alex carefully took it and turned it over in his hand before letting it drop back to Jackson’s chest.

“So, what happened?”

Jackson hid the necklace back into his shirt. “I was sitting down with my friend Olivia when they sent me a text that I was definitely not supposed to see. It…” Jackson felt his voice start to shake. “It said some really really awful things about me, things I’d never thought I’d hear them say about anyone. When I asked them about the message they told me to my face that it was meant for some guy they were cheating with. I broke the engagement off there.”

Alex sat in stunned silence. Part of him was angry that his new friend had been through something like that, but another part of him was surprised that Jackson trusted him enough to say this at all. Above all, though, he wasn’t really sure how to react. Was he supposed to say something? Try to comfort him? Frankly, he had no idea how to handle this kind of thing with another dude. As Jackson stared into the pond, Alex was left with a choice.

“I’m sorry that happened to you.”

Jackson wiped his eye and cautiously glanced to the jock, who kept his hands curled in his lap. “Thanks. Sorry to unload all of that on you, that wasn’t….fair of me.”

“No no no!” Alex threw his hands up. “It’s ok! I’m glad you trust me enough to tell me all of that.” 

“Y-yeah…” It wasn’t really a trust thing, though. If it had been, he would’ve told the full story. “But I hope you get why I’m not really down to do a Flower Dance thing.”

Alex leaned his arms back into the sand and stared off at the horizon. “You should still come and at least watch. No one’s gonna give you crap if you don’t dance, and the experience is important, you know?”

‘Thank Yoba he isn’t asking about why I still have the ring.’ Jackson finally relaxed his shoulders some and sniffled. “Swear on that?” He stuck his right pinkie finger out. Alex looked back with confusion. 

“What? What’s the finger thing about?”

“It’s a swear. Something Olivia and I came up with. A promise made through a swear is eternal. We used it to try and overcome anxiety we had about things like speeches and projects. So, if you swear on it with me, I’ll get over my fear and join you guys at the dance.”

Alex laughed and hooked his pinkie through Jacksons, shaking his hand. “Jackson you’re one strange dude, but sure. I swear that no one will give a crap if you don’t dance.”

“Then, Alex, I shall join you.”

\---------

The Flower Dance, as Lewis had stated in his letter, was buried deep in the western woods. Alex led Jackson down a path he had never taken before, although in fairness he hadn’t spent much time in the woods to begin with. Luckily for the two, the rain had begun to clear up and previous overcast had broken away to reveal clear blue sky above that helped light their way to the clearing. There, Jackson was greeted with a wide open field decorated with pastel streamers, balloons, and more of Evelyn’s carefully crafted flower displays. Townsfolk meandered about, the men dressed in pressed blue suits with carnations in their breast pockets, and women in white gowns that fluttered in the breeze. Haley, ever the one to stand out, twirled about in the center of it all sporting a white flower crown. Jackson couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the display.

As the two entered the clearing, the two local kids ran up to them with flower crowns in their hands. Vincent, Sam’s younger brother, had a haphazard construction of daisies and what appeared to be dandelions whereas Jas, a little girl Marnie cared for, had a surprisingly lovely construction of some orange flower and daisies. 

“We made crowns! C’mon try them on!” 

Jackson took Jas’s crown with a smile and placed it atop his head as Alex attempted to refuse Vincent’s creation. Eventually the crown gave out entirely, and Jackson could see Vincent’s bottom lip start to quiver. Quick to act, he hopped between him and Alex and bent down to the boy’s level.

“Your crown fell apart huh? Well that’s ok, that’s ok! It happens sometimes, that just means you get to go make a new one!”

Vincent’s eyes began to water as he looked up to Jackson. “But I don’t want to make another, I wanted to give Alex that one!”

Jackson placed a hand on his chin, using his other hand to keep himself balanced on his heels. He had to be careful, kids aren’t known for being easy to negotiate with and the last thing he wanted was to cause a scene right as he got here. People might not give him crap for not dancing, but they’d definitely give him crap for making a kid cry. Sam wouldn’t be happy with him, that’s for sure. His eyes darted around for an answer, before falling on a scarecrow sitting behind Pierre’s nearby booth.

Of course he had a booth. He couldn’t go a single festival without selling something, but he couldn’t stay open on Wednesdays. Regardless, Jackson jogged over and threw money down for the scarecrow before bringing her over to the kids. He propped her up in front of himself and waved her arms about.

“Hey pals! I need a hand, can you help me out?”

Jas put a hand over he mouth, trying to hide a giggle. Vincent was even more impressed, and quick to throw his hand up and shout “I can help! I can help!”

“Good! See, I just woke up this morning and flat forgot my name. Can you two help me get a new name, one that’s really really pretty like me?”

Alex watched on impressed as Jackson continued to charm the kids with the scarecrow puppet, eventually convincing the two of them to run off and make the scarecrow a flower crown of its own. Once the kids were gone, he flashed Jackson a double thumbs up.

“Good work there, you’re pretty good with kids huh?”

“Well,” Jackson put the scarecrow on the ground and brushed some loose hay off his shirt, “When you practically raise the neighbor’s kids on your own you pick up a trick or two. One thing to remember, young kids like to feel like they’re being helpful. Give them something to do that makes them feel like they’re helping you or another grown-up and you’ll have them eating out of the palm of your hand.”

“Smart trick. Now what are you gonna do with ‘Lala Snailbutt’ down there?”

“Eh, I’ll prop her up in the field somewhere. Maybe I’ll start a flower patch just for her to look over.”

From the center of the field, Lewis sounded a call for all the dancers to gather. Alex froze in place, realizing he was still in his varsity jacket and jeans.

“Ah crap! I gotta change! Uh, well, good luck with that and all, I’ll see you later Jackson!”

Jackson waved as the jock ran off in a panic, searching for a place to change. He glanced down to Lala Snailbutt, sprawled unceremoniously across the grass, and stood her back up. He ran his fingers through her hay hair to straighten it back out some as Jas and Vincent came charging back over, another dandelion monstrosity in their hands. Jackson shrugged. At least she’d look pretty. 

\-------------

That night, Jackson sat in bed and stared at his phone for the first time in a week attempting to make sense of Tweeter. Despite his communications experience, he had only passing familiarity with how the more mainstream social media outlets worked. So far he had managed to set a profile picture and post a single picture of Piper chasing a butterfly, but he hadn’t figured out how to set his account to private. Regardless, he had managed to go ahead and follow all the other locals that had followed him. As he fiddled with his settings, a text from Sam came in.

‘Dude, check that account I told u about’

Jackson squinted at the screen, trying to remember what Sam was referring to.

‘What?’

‘@stardew_truths remember?’  
‘Check the most recent post.’

Jackson flipped back to Tweeter and pulled the account up. 

“Ok let’s see…’Jackson is a shut in townie who has to literally make his own friends’. Wait, what?”

Jackson couldn’t believe it. Attached to the message was a photo of him and Lala Snailbutt as he had been fixing her hair. Someone had snapped the photo sometime during the Flower Dance as he had been minding his own business. His fingers flew across the screen as he texted Sam back.

‘Who the hell posted that.’

‘No idea, man. I asked Seb if he could dig into the account, but he said he didn’t wanna get in trouble with the site admins.’  
‘U ok?’

‘Honestly? No. I’m really really not ok.’  
‘It’s really childish but I feel sick to my stomach.’

‘Dude do you need me to come over?’

‘No. I’ll be ok.’

Jackson ran his hand down Piper’s back, repeating that back to himself. “I’ll be ok, I’ll be ok. I’m an adult, I don’t care what they say. I’m not gonna twist myself in a knot to join this game. Whatever they say about me, I don’t care.” 

He continued muttering to himself, but that feeling in his chest refused to go away. He slapped a hand to his forehead in frustration and threw the phone face down onto his side table before picking it up once more as Sam replied.

‘Ok. But let us know if u aren’t ok, ok?’  
‘Ur still new in town, we don’t want u to feel unwelcome.’

‘I know. You guys have been awesome so far and this place really is great. I’m not gonna let some anon twerp bother me.’

‘Gotcha. Keep it up, dude!’

Jackson threw the phone back down on the table and planted his face in his pillow. There he let himself sob for several minutes, causing Piper and Chicle to each curl up and snuggle into his head. There they stayed for the rest of the night as Jackson eventually allowed himself to drift off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angst is surprisingly fun to write, and there's definitely more on the way in time. For now, have a taste of Jackson's history and some slight main plot progression.


	9. What Makes a Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After yet another visit to Dr. Harvey, Jackson visits Evelyn to get a haircut. There, he receives sincere life advice that comes in use when he finds Alex outside venting to his dog.

“Heat stroke?!”

Jackson found himself in Dr. Harvey’s office once more, Sebastian by his side with an annoyed expression plastered across his face. Sebastian had stepped outside for a moment to smoke when he had found the farmer passed out on the ground. With some effort, he had managed to haul him to the doctor for a checkup. Harvey had merely sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose as the two placed Jackson in his usual bed.

“No, I said heat exhaustion. You’re lucky Sebastian found you, though. You were close to getting a proper heat stroke.”

“Jackson, seriously, what the hell were you doing?” Sebastian asked, tapping his foot against the tile floor with his arms cross in front of him. Jackson thought for a moment, his mind a bit fuzzy. 

“Well, I’m pretty sure I was trying to fish with that rod Willy left me. I wasn’t really ready for such a hot summer.” Jackson brushed his bangs from his eyes. “Spring had been pretty nice for the most part, and summers were never all that warm back home.”

Harvey sat down in a nearby chair, pinching his nose once more as he leaned over. Sebastian simply shook his head.

“Dude you are gonna die if you keep up the way you’re going.”

“Normally I’d disagree, but Sebastian is right. Two head injuries in one season, and now you’re trying to fry your brain. Jackson, you sincerely need to take better care of yourself. This is going to sound like a very odd suggestion, but I think you should consider a haircut.”

“A haircut?” Jackson grabbed at his bangs. It’s true, his hair was pretty long overall. That combined with its natural thickness meant that it trapped heat like crazy when it was hot out. That had never been an issue before back at school, he wasn’t outside nearly as often after all. But here he could see how that was a problem.

“Yes, a haircut. As it stands your hair is effectively helping you cook yourself. I’d give Sebastian the same advice if he ever left his room,” Harvey said, giving Sebastian a side-eyed glance. Sebastian sneered in return. “It doesn’t need to be anything drastic, just something to thin it out and keep it thin so you don’t cook yourself. As it is now, your hair is dummy thick and leaving it long will just keep trapping heat.”

Jackson and Sebastian both stared at Harvey with wide eyes. He cocked an eyebrow in confusion.

“Hm? Did I say something wrong?”  
“Uh, Harvey, why did you say it like that?” Sebastian asked.

“Oh, was there something wrong with that? I asked Sam what it meant when he called an ice cream dummy thick earlier and he told me it was just youth slang. Does it not just mean really thick?”

Jackson and Sebastian exchanged a knowing glance with one another. Nothing was said, and both knew that they could never tell him the truth. “Yep, no Sam is totally right!” Sebastian gave a stiff thumbs up, “Totally something the youth say. I just didn’t expect you to be so….hip.”

Harvey gave a goofy crooked smile and handed Jackson a water bottle. “Keep yourself hydrated, and cut that hair. Now yeet yourselves out of here.”

The second Jackson and Sebastian left Harvey’s office they lost their minds. Sam found the two practically rolling on the pavement in laughter, and gave a knowing smirk.

“Ah I see you two have experienced Harvey’s new range of dialogue. You’re welcome for the expansion, my dudes.” He bowed, his hair scraping the ground as he threw his arms out to either side. “I didn’t think he’d actually buy into it, but that dude’s really into trying to stay up to date for some reason.”

Sebastian gave Sam a light punch in the arm. “You dumbass! We were trying to get Jackson to stop hurting himself and we had to hear the dude unironically call Jackson’s hair ‘dummy thick’. You’re a menace to society!”

“Oh, yeah, while I’m thinking about it,” Jackson said, “Who cuts hair around here? That bus is still broken so I don’t really have any means of getting out of town without Lewis, and honestly I’m not sure I can handle a long car ride with him. Is there someone in town?”

“Granny Evelyn!” Sam said, fast as ever, “She’ll do anything for you, no judgement or anything!”

“That’s how Sam keeps himself looking like Goku after all.” Sebastian said with a smirk as Sam returned the punch from earlier.

Jackson put a hand to his chin in thought. Evelyn...he remembered the name but couldn’t put a face to it. Then it came back to him, and he remembered his first day in the valley.

“Wait, Alex’s grandmother?”

“Yeah, her. She used to be a hairdresser when she was younger, I think. She’s pretty good, so I definitely recommend visiting her. Besides, you said a week or so back that you had some hair dye you wanted to try, yeah? She’ll definitely put that in for you.” 

As confident as Sam seemed, Jackson couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous. A city barber was never an issue. You could go in, get your job done, leave, and never see them again. No need to worry about what someone you’ll only see once thinks of you, and they were typically young professionals who didn’t have time to spare thinking about you anyway. Evelyn, in contrast, was a small town old woman who knew everybody and everybody knew her. There was no avoiding her and what she thought of you. Combine that with Jackson’s first experience with her being him with another heat related injury, and he couldn’t shake the thought that she wouldn’t think very highly of him. 

No, no. No good came from getting yourself worked up over what if’s. Jackson knew it wasn’t something he could help, it was just how his brain worked after all, but it was something he could control with effort. He thanked Sam and Sebastian for their help, and went to Evelyn’s home after stopping by his own to grab a small tube of hair dye. Once at Evelyn’s, and with a good deal of effort, he forced himself to knock on the door. He was greeted mere moments later by Evelyn’s ever smiling face.

“Oh my goodness! Jackson it’s been a long while since I saw you last...come in come in! Wipe your shoes on the welcome mat and come in! I just finished today’s batch of cookies, they’re all seashell shaped!”

Jackson did as instructed, some of the pent up anxieties leaving his body as the kindly old woman lead him into her kitchen. The whole house smelled like chocolate and flowers, a scent only enhanced once Evelyn placed the tray of cookies on the kitchen table. She clapped her hands together, waiting for Jackson to try one. With a nervous smile, he grabbed on of the top and took a bite. 

“So, how is it my dear? I’m trying a new recipe this year!”

“It’s wonderful, you’re a very good baker Mrs….?”

“Mullner, sweetie, but you are more than welcome to call me Granny.” Evelyn gave a bright smile. She may have been missing a few teeth here and there, but Jackson would say she easily had one of the warmest smiles in this entire town. Sam would be the close second, but that was partially due to the fact that he was the only other person in town that was always smiling. 

“Mrs. Granny.” Jackson gave a cheeky grin, and Evelyn giggled.

“So what brings you by today, dear? I don’t imagine you’re just here for a visit?”

Jackson pulled at his bangs. “Harvey says I need to consider getting a haircut. Everyone else in town tells me you do a good job with it.”

Evelyn slowly turned towards the house’s back hall, and motioned for Jackson to follow. She led him into her bedroom, and removed a few supplies from her nightstand. “I used to be a hairdresser,” she said, a nostalgic sadness in her voice, “But once George had the accident I wasn’t able to drive all the way to where I worked anymore. I always said I was going to go right back once he was better, but he never did. Once Alex came into our lives I realized I just did not have the time to spend on it any more. But, luckily for me, I can still do something for the people in town.”

Evelyn laid a tarp over the floor and placed a chair in the center of it, spreading her tools of the trade across her nightstand. With a careful pat, she motioned for Jackson to take a seat.

“I do have to say out of everyone, Sam is my favorite person to tend to. Such a bright spirit in that one, and he’s the only one that seems to want to truly express himself out of my regulars. Now then, what am I doing for you?”

Jackson fiddled with the bottle of dye in his hands. It was a verdant green, a far cry from the pink streak he had now. “I need everything shortened and thinned. I was thinking of maybe doing an undercut along the sides….is that too much? Please let me know if anything is too much, I don’t want to impose-”

Evelyn placed a finger over his mouth. “Hush now,” she said, a stern look in her eye, “In here you are my guest and client. I will do whatever it is that you want me to do with your hair, it is your hair after all. You aren’t imposing by asking me for anything. I’ll venture to guess you’d like me to recolor your streak with that bottle, yes?” She took the bottle from Jackson and looked it over in the light. “I saw you trying to hide it when you walked in. Sweetie, let me tell you something very important, and I want you to listen. Anyone in this world who cares about how you express yourself is not worth your concern. As long as you’re healthy, happy, and not hurting anyone, you shouldn’t be ashamed of how you want to look.”

Jackson sighed, and hung his head. “Y-yeah, I hear you….”

Evelyn pursed her lips and sat on the edge of the bed beside Jackson’s chair. She took his hands into her own, and rubbed her thumb against the back of his left hand. “Sweetie, what’s wrong? Your eyes are tired. My eyes might not be very good anymore, but I can always tell when someone is hurting. Tell Granny.”

“I…” Jackson struggled trying to find what to start with, and what he could appropriately dump on this kindly old woman. Despite her sweet demeanor, she was still effectively a stranger after all. “Well, I guess I need to say it eventually. I….never told my mother I moved here.”  
Evelyn’s eyes went wide. “You didn’t? Heavens, why?”

“My mother isn’t a very supportive person. She didn’t want me to leave the house for university, she never wanted me to dress like I wanted, and so on. She wanted me to stay at home and be the perfect kid that she could show off to all of her friends and brag about how perfectly wonderful her family was. I haven’t spoken to her since I told her about the letter abuelo left for me.”

Evelyn’s brow furrowed, and she patted the back of Jackson’s hand. “Jackson, you better listen now, you hear? Sometimes your family isn’t the one you’re born into. I don’t know why your mother is the way she is, and I won’t press you to find out, but I do know that if you can’t find a family in her you can find one here.”

Jackson tried to keep his composure, he truly did, but it wasn’t long before his facade cracked and the tears came. Evelyn simply pulled him close to her boney frame and held him tight as he cried into her shoulder. Someone who was effectively a stranger was there for him when he needed it. She didn’t judge him for crying, and she didn’t berate him for soaking her blouse. She simply sat, listened, and did what she needed to do. 

When Jackson finally stopped crying, Evelyn rose to her feet and grabbed her electric razor. “Now then, I believe a handsome young man asked for an undercut and green in his hair? Well if that’s the case, let’s get started.”

An hour and a half later, Jackson’s ‘appointment’ was finished. He felt lighter, if nothing else, with locks of his hair covering the floor. He ran his hand along the side of his head, feeling the stubbled sensation of the short cropped hair versus the longer strands that stood atop his head. Looking in the mirror, he was able to see the new splash of green Evelyn had carefully painted in. He rose to his feet, a strange sense of confidence in him, and attempted to hand Evelyn some money in exchange for her work. She simply pushed it against his chest, shaking her head.

“I don’t accept money for this. Instead, all I ask is that you bring my George a nice leek if you find it. He loves them, and I can’t go up into the mountains to search for them anymore.”

“Sure thing, Granny. And….sincerely, thank you. You barely know me but you were more than willing to listen to me, and that really means a lot.”

“Oh, come now. A granny needs to be there for her grandkids. Now then, you run along. Oh, and tell Alex that the cookies are ready if you see him!”

Jackson nodded and gave a wave as he headed outside once more. The clouds had begun to roll in, and the distant drum of thunder warned of an incoming storm. He was ready to make a dash for home when he heard talking from near the dog pen. Looking over, he saw Alex leaned against the fence speaking to a ratty old hounddog.

“Dusty….you might be the only one in town who really understands me,” Alex sighed, sliding his body down the fence and resting his chin on the top of the boards, “No one else here has seen the things you and I have.”

Jackson knew he had a choice in that moment. He could easily slip away and pretend he didn’t hear anything, or he could reveal himself. One option avoided any confrontation whatsoever and left him off the hook for potentially draining and tricky interaction. The other, though, would return the kindness that Evelyn just gave to him. There was a right choice, and when Jackson stepped up beside Alex and crossed his own arms over the fence, he made that choice. Alex jumped, startled when Jackson arrived.

“Jackson! Uh, er….you heard me talking, didn’t you?”

Jackson nodded. “Yeah, I heard the whole thing. Why do you think no one else gets it?”

Alex rose back up, and tapped the tip of his shoe against the dirt. “Well...I guess I can tell you. You’ve told me a lot already, it’s only fair if I’m honest right back. See, my dad…” he lowered his head, “My dad wasn’t a good guy. He would always get himself absolutely wasted and come home drunk as hell. He’d beat my mom pretty bad almost every day. One day I finally stood up to him, I said ‘dad that’s not right! You shouldn’t hit mom like that!’ He told me he could do what he damn well pleased and that I needed to know my place. He choked me out and pinned me against a wall, screaming in my face about how worthless and stupid I was.”

Alex kicked the edge of the fence hard enough to cause Dusty to pop up, alert. Without thinking, Jackson patted the other man on the back. When he realized what he was doing, he almost stopped himself. Alex didn’t react, so Jackson kept his hand in place as he continued.

“People thought I was rude for not being upset when that piece of shit died. People couldn’t seem to wrap their heads around the idea that a kid couldn’t like his dad. Anyway….that’s basically why I live with my grandparents now.”

The two stood and stared at the dog in the center of the pen, and the dog stared back. Jackson, for the first time, got a better look at his features. He was an old ratty thing, with mottled brown fur that looked like it hadn’t been washed recently. His eyes gave his age away, with a tired aged look in them. Jackson understood what Alex was saying about this dog having been through things. If he could talk, he would probably have an equally depressing story to tell. 

“My dad was trash too,” Jackson finally said, “Not as trash as your dad, but trash. He wasn’t even a little bit faithful, so mom claimed. He threw himself at every hot young thing he could seduce and was always out at wild hours partying his life away. He broke the family up, and mom was basically not there for anyone as a result. She started leaving the house more and left me to care for myself.” 

Jackson turned to look Alex in the eye. He was surprised, despite pouring all that out there was not a single tear in the man’s eyes. Instead the only thing there was the look of frustration. 

“Why do dads suck so much?” Alex said, finally looking back at Jackson.

“I dunno,” Jackson sighed, “And I can’t claim to understand exactly what you went through, and I can’t relate exactly, but I can say that I’m….I’m here. If you need to vent or you just need someone to be there, I can be that guy for you.”

Alex was silent for a moment, before giving a soft grin. “Thanks, Jackson. That means a lot. You know, I’ve never talked about any of this stuff with anyone before. I think it’s kinda funny I’m telling all of this to you. You’ve got a good vibe, and you’ve been the most supportive of my gridball dreams out of everyone else. So...thanks, man.” 

Alex gave Jackson a firm slap on the back, nearly knocking the smaller man into the dog pen. With a laugh, he pulled a small slab of meat from his pocket and hooked an arm around Jackson’s shoulder.

“Hey, hey! You should see what Dusty will do for a good steak! Haha, I think he likes meat almost as much as I do!”

\-------------

Jackson arrived back home that evening just in time for the storm to move in. The distant drum of thunder became a roar overhead that sent Piper cowering under Jackson’s feet all night. Chicle, in contrast, was happily rolling about outside. As Jackson laid himself out in bed for the night, his phone rang.

“Jackson Varo, what’s up?”

“Jakkie! It’s Olivia!”

It was rare for her to call instead of texting. Jackson cracked a smirk, he knew that she had something pressing to tell him, and that always meant that he was in for an entertaining evening. He sat up in bed, one arm cupping a trembling pup.

“‘Sup Livvie, what’s the drama you got?”

“Har har, very funny. No drama right now, believe it or not. School isn’t in session, so no one’s around to start crap anyway. No I have good news this time!”

“That’s rare.”

“If I was there I’d smack you,” Olivia said bluntly, “You seem to think so highly of me.”

“Alright alright, I’ll bite. What’s the good news?”

“Kerry and I are dating!” Olivia squealed. Jackson moved the phone from his ear in an attempt to save his hearing. “He finally called me earlier this evening and asked me on a date, and it went so well! We went and saw that new superhero flick everyone’s been talking about, and he was so sweet! He bought me popcorn, and he held the door, and…”

She continued on for several minutes. Jackson sat in amused silence as she recounted her date from earlier that evening. Kerry had been trying to make a move on her since freshman year and never seemed to get the guts to do it. Jackson and Kerry had never quite hit it off, but he was a nice enough guy overall.

“So, enough about me. Let’s catch up. How are things going with this jock boy?”

Jackson’s face immediately flushed red, and he stammered back into the phone, “Wh-what are you talking about?”

“Oh, you know,” Olivia teased, “Mr. tall, tan, and handsome you were talking about earlier in spring.”

“Nothing’s happening!”

“Are you sure?”

“Actually…” Jackson paused for a moment to gather his thoughts, “Yeah, I’m sure. He’s a good guy, and extremely attractive, but we had a super sincere talk today and I realized I don’t really find myself crushing on him anymore. He’s more of a really good friend, honestly. He’s just a cool, sincere dude. Plus he’s straight.”

“Aww how do you know that?”

“There’s this awful mess of a girl named Haley that hangs all over him. She is like the epitome of sorority trash, I have no idea how she even wound up down here. Can you believe it, when I tried to introduce myself to her the first thing she said was that my clothes made me look like a chick, and that she could find better fashion at a truck stop.”

“....Yikes, that’s bad. You know she didn’t know better with th-”

“I know. It doesn’t make it less infuriating, but I know. It also doesn’t make any of what she said appropriate.”

“What did you say back?”

“I called her a pair of tits with legs in Spanish.”

“Oh you bastard! You can’t insult people in languages they don’t know!”

“Oho, but I did! We haven’t really gotten along since, though. I tried to apologize and she just flipped me the bird and moved on. She even broke my bowl!”

“No! Not the bowl!” Olivia said, feigning concern.

“Yes, the bowl! Anyway, no idea how he puts up with her. Regardless, he’s just a friend now and nothing more. Part of me is...kinda happy that’s the case, honestly.”

“Well, you’ll find someone someday Jakkie. It’s getting late, and I know you get up early, so I’m gonna let you go. Night, ok?”

“Night. Love ya Liv.”

“Love you too, Jakkie. Remember our promise, ok?”

“I will.”

And with that, she hung up. Jackson returned the phone to his side table and laid his head down in the bed, thinking about what he had said. He realized, he hadn’t told a single lie. He really had gotten over his schoolyard crush on Alex today after that conversation. Part of him couldn’t help but feel like this was the start of a special friendship, and for the first time in his life he was ok with that. For the first time, a friend was all he really needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, I'm not sorry. I'm not sorry at all. Blame Sam.
> 
> In other news, another angst chapter yay! And spoiler warning- this is still a shipping fic. Don't let the ending worry you too much. We're ready to start taking bigger time skips and really going to new places. There's still a lot of story to tell, so buckle up!


	10. Deal with the Devil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Pelican Town luau finally arrives, and with the celebration comes a new friendship between Jackson and Haley. With a little bit of observation and work, Haley manages to worm a confession out of Jackson that leads to an unlikely partnership.

“Knock knock! I know it’s early, but you promised me you’d help set up!”

Jackson opened his eyes, and rolled out of bed. It was earlier than normal for him, and that meant something. Even Piper wasn’t her usual rambunctious self, only waking up enough to shoot him a stink eye before going back to snoring. 

Jackson wasn’t entirely certain how Lewis had convinced him to help set up for the town’s annual luau. Thinking on it, he was pretty sure it had been last Friday in the tavern when Lewis approached him about it. Sam had somehow convinced Jackson to have a drinking contest with Shane, and most of that night wound up a blur. In all honesty, he wasn’t entirely certain how he managed to get home that night. He ventured to guess that Lewis had taken advantage of his intoxicated state and worked from there. Jackson did his best to look on the bright side- this was an important town activity and getting involved would help him be more social in town. He begrudgingly threw on his clothes, latched Piper to her leash, and met Lewis on his front porch.

“Oh, bringing the pup now? She’d better behave herself, I don’t want the governor to regret visiting us this year!” Lewis grimaced as Piper gave a wide yawn in protest.

“She’ll keep herself out of trouble, I promise. I’ll keep her out of the potluck, if that’s what you’re worried about. She needs some socialization, anyway.” Jackson gave the pup a gentle pat on the head. Piper flopped over on the porch in response. 

Lewis simply shook his head as he led the two to the beach. There, Marnie had already begun preparations for the potluck itself. Aside from her, however, the beach was silent. Jackson hooked Piper’s leash to a tree in the shade and followed Lewis to a clear patch of sand to the west.

“Here is where we’re going to set up our dance floor. I want you to lay those,” Lewis motioned to a massive pile of palm fronds, “Across the sand. I have Haley coming down later to assist with the speakers, once she gets here I need the two of you to work together to set them up. Remember, the governor is coming!”

Jackson gave a pained smile as Lewis went to assist Marnie with the soup. Being forced to work with Haley was less than ideal, but there was no helping it now. Piper watched from the shade as he began piling the fronds across the sand. After a few hours, a familiar blonde pain in the ass strutted onto the beach and made her way over to him, a wagon with two sets of speakers in tow. Strangely enough, though, her face didn’t bear the same toxic glare it normally had when the two met up face to face. Instead, she looked almost worried.

“Listen, don’t say anything just let me talk.”

Jackson laid the palm frond in his hand on the ground and crossed his arms, attempting to keep his face as stoic as possible. 

“I wanted to apologize,” she said, hanging her head, “I was really rude and stuff to you, and I kinda felt bad about it. Alex told me you’re a cool guy, so I figured I’d give you a chance. Do you forgive me?”

Jackson kept his arms crossed and raised an eyebrow. “What’s this about?”

“What, can’t a girl just apologize?” Haley pouted, looking up at Jackson with puppy dog eyes, “Here I am trying to be the bigger person for once and you won’t hear me out!”

Jackson sighed, and motioned for Haley to join him over by Piper. A moment’s rest wouldn’t hurt, after all. If Lewis had an issue with that he could get over it. Clearing a spot in the sand, the two sat down together. 

“People don’t typically just apologize after months of silence for no reason, so….pardon me if I’m not super receptive right away. Be straight with me, what is this about?” Jackson’s voice was a bit more blunt than intended, but Haley didn’t seem too taken aback. She lowered her head and placed a hand on Piper’s back, who was all too happy to have a new person scratch her.

“Alex told me you were a good listener, so please hear me out.” Her voice was surprisingly sincere and vulnerable. Jackson relaxed his shoulders and gave a nod as she continued. “I have a reputation in town, but you knew that didn’t you? Everyone sees me as this plastic doll….thing. You even said something similar, what was that? Tits with legs?”

Jackson felt his face flush and his blood run cold, but Haley merely grabbed his hand and held it in her own. 

“It’s ok, it’s fine. I’ve heard worse, and honestly your insult was one of the most creative that I’ve gotten, haha! But….listen, when everyone has this idea of what you’re supposed to be it wears on you. If everyone is calling you some fake, two faced thing all the time, you’re going to turn into one. People forget that I’m a human too, and their words hurt.”

Haley let a few tears fall, and wiped at her eye. Jackson sat in silence, watching as she weeped into her hands. Was she really just apologizing because Alex said he was a good listener? Part of him honestly hoped that no one else heard that, because he wasn’t emotionally ready to become the town therapist. Not entirely certain how to react, he placed a hand on her shoulder and gave a gentle pat. She sniffled once more in response before looking to him with red, puffy eyes.

“Listen, Jack...can I call you Ja-”

“No.” 

“Fine, Jackson. I know all the stuff I’m saying sounds super hollow, and you probably don’t even care about the ‘woe is me’ story from the town pretty girl, but if you can forgive me we can move on from this. I’m sorry, I really really am. I’m trying to learn to live by that saying….you know that ‘it’s all fine until someone gets hurt?’”

Jackson stared at Haley, a stern expression painted on his face. After a moment, he stuck his finger out. Haley simply stared back, her face scrunched up in confusion.

“We’re going to swear on it then. You and I can both stand to learn something here.”

“Now I have to ask what you’re getting at. Swear?”

Jackson raised his right hand, finger pointed in the air. “It’s an old trick, one taught to me by one of my closest friends a year or so back. What you do, is you take your right finger like so….go on, like this.” Jackson watched as Haley awkwardly raised her finger. “Good. Now, wave it around a bit.”

Haley looked at him like he had grown a second head, before entertaining his request and waving her finger around with a roll of her eyes. Jackson smirked.

“Perfect. Now, repeat after me: I’m gonna be me. I don’t care what people say.”

“I’m…..going to be me. I don’t care what people say. ….Like that?”

“Perfect. Now, normally you’d leave your swear like that, but since we’re making an agreement we’re going to hook our fingers together.”

Jackson stuck his finger out once more, and Haley hooked her’s through his. Jackson gave a gentle shake.

“I forgive you for what you said, we can move on.” 

“I forgive you for what you said, we can move on,” Haley repeated back, still confused over this ritualistic approach to self confidence and apologies, “..Ok so why did it have to be done that way? Can’t you just say sorry?”

Jackson shook his head. “No….well, yeah, but when you swear you do something stronger than promising. I dunno, it’s just something that’s really helped me out is all. I know it’s...kinda weird.”

“I mean, yeah it is, but like….if it works for you it works for you, I guess.” Haley stood, brushing sand off of her skirt. She trotted over to the speakers. “But we’re all better now, and we need to get to work on these speakers before Lewis gives up on flirting with Marnie.”

“Yeah…” Jackson’s voice trailed off as the girl began gathering the speakers from the wagon. He couldn’t shake the feeling in the pit of his stomach that something wasn’t quite right about all of this. He tried to shake it off as he rose to his feet and knocked the sand out of his pants, but it still sat in his chest like a rock. What was this girl trying to do? That question rattled in his head as he jogged over to lend a hand.

After the speakers were set up and the dance floor was prepped, the other villagers began arriving to the beach. Jackson and Haley returned to their spot in the shade for a break, fresh punch from Lewis in their hands. They sipped and stroked Piper as Emily, Robin, and her husband Demetrius took to the dance floor.

“So Emily is your sister, huh? She’s quirky,” Jackson said, watching as Emily flailed about without a care in the world, “I’d kill to be as confident as she is. All eyes on her and she doesn’t even flinch.”

“Ugh, she’s so annoying. She’s always nagging about cleaning and crap.” Haley took another sip of punch. “Still, she’s my sister. No one else is allowed to be mean to her but me. That’s part of why I want to find out who that Stardew Truths person is.”

“Stardew truths...oh that Tweeter account? Did they say something about Emily?”

Haley took out her phone and showed it to Jackson. Stardew Truths was open on the screen, with one of their most recent posts highlighted. “Emily is a drug addicted freak who would rather live in a fantasy than her pathetic real life,” Jackson read, “...Yoba this is awful. I haven’t seen crap this….childish since I was in high school.”

“Yeah, I know,” Haley returned the phone to her pocket, “Some real bored lowlife is out there laughing their ass off at ripping into people. I wasn’t even going to bother with it until I saw it started getting followers. Apparently Tweeter users are sluts for drama, and it doesn’t help that a few locals are taking the bait. Sam, mostly. He’s replied to almost every single one of their posts trying to defend people.”

“Sam’s a good guy. He may not be the brightest, but he’s got a good heart.”

Haley pursed her lips. “He’s...something. Hey, isn’t that him over there harassing a crab?”

Sure enough it was. Sam, Sebastian, and Abigail were darting back and forth near the waves chasing after something. Every few moments Abigail would strike at the sand with a stick and send it flying, but it seemed whatever they were chasing was winning. Jackson began to stand to go join them when Haley grabbed his shoulder.

“Where are you going?”

“What? Oh, I’m going to go join the others on the beach. Why?”

“Oh come on you aren’t really going to go down there and act like a child, are you?” she said, incredulous, “I thought you were more mature than that.”

Jackson cocked an eyebrow. “You’re going back on your swear, darling. Remember, we don’t care about what others think here. If I wanna play in the sand, then I’ll play in the sand. If people have crap to say about it then….” he shook his head, “Th-then I don’t care. Later!”

Haley watched as Jackson ran off to the shoreline to join the others in their fruitless attempt to catch some random crab. She crossed her legs, and shook her head. “He makes this too easy, I swear.”

“Who does?”

Haley’s head snapped to her left, where Alex was taking a seat in the shade next to her. She glared at him for interrupting her. “No one, don’t worry about it. What are you doing?”

A confused expression fell on Alex’s face. “Huh? Nothing, I’m just chilling in the shade with you….and Jackson’s dog? Hey girl!”

Piper wiggled about happily as Alex scratched her chin. She eventually managed to wiggle her way entirely into his lap, where she proceeded to fall into a content sleep. Alex continued scratching her ears, resulting in a deep and happy sigh from the pup. 

“Hey, what are Jackson and them all up to? Looks like they’re having a good time, I don’t think I’ve even see Sebastian smile before.”

Haley groaned. “He left me all alone over here to chase some stupid crab, even after I went through all the effort of making up with him. Can you believe it?”

“Uh-huh,” Alex said, his eyes never leaving the group on the shoreline, “Wait, huh? You two finally made up? That’s great to hear!”

“Yeah, I guess we did anyway. He did some stupid finger thing with me and said we were officially on good terms or whatever,” she huffed, getting back to her feet, “Why are you watching him so closely anyway?”

Alex snapped back to Haley, not even realizing he had been staring so intently. “I just like his energy, I guess. He’s one of the only people who’s actually, you know, taken time to actually get to know me.”

With a loud whack from the beach and a sudden cheer from the group, Jackson raised a smashed crab in the air with a proud grin across his face. Sam proceeded to tackle him, tousling his hair as the two fell on the ground laughing. Abigail and Sebastian watched from the sideline with smirks on their faces.

“His energy….exists,” Haley spat, “Keep looking at him like that and people will think you have a thing for him. Anyway, I’m gonna go get something to eat before the governor shows up. Have fun staring him down.”

Alex gave a confused wave as Haley strutted over to the banquet tables. He wasn’t entirely certain what she was on about, there wasn’t anything wrong with being curious about what a dude was up to and watching him. Gridball players watched each other work and train all the time. Hell, he had pictures of bodybuilders he used for motivation plastered in his locker! There wasn’t anything weird about that. He chuckled to himself, Haley was always way too worried about other people’s perceptions of her. He was about to stand up and get food himself when Jackson jogged back over, smashed crab in hand.

“Oh, hey Alex! I see someone got a little too comfortable in your lap.”

Piper opened an eye and gave Jackson a side glance before snuggling deeper into Alex’s lap and sighing. Alex simply laughed and tousled the dog’s ears. “She’s not a problem, she’s really sweet actually.”

“Glad you think so,” Jackson said, sitting down, “Lewis was worried she was going to be a menace. I swear the eyes were ready to bug out of his head when he saw I was going to bring her!” 

“Lewis thinks everything is a menace. Only menace in town is Sam, honestly, and he doesn’t really try to be.”

Jackson laughed before taking his phone out. “Hey, I meant to ask but last time I saw you it didn’t feel super appropriate, but could I....get your number? Summer season stuff is about to pick up on the farm, so I may not be able to get into town as often as I’d like, but I don’t want to fall out of touch with anyone.”

“Oh, sure thing!” Alex took Jackson’s phone and typed in his number, missing as Jackson pumped his fist and silently cheered. “Who’s Olivia?” he asked as he passed it back.

“Oh! She’s a college friend of mine. She must want something. Let’s see…”  
‘JAKKIE!’

“Oh Yoba it’s in all caps.”

“What’s that mean?” Alex asked, glancing over Jackson’s shoulder.

“Either she has good news, or she’s about to drop gossip. Let’s find out together, shall we?” Jackson replied, his fingers flying across the screen.

‘News or gossip?’

‘News! I got a bus ticket to visit you in the fall!’

Jackson furrowed his brow before turning to Alex. “Hey, what happens here in the fall?”

“In the fall? The Valley Fair and Spirit’s Eve are the only celebrations we have. From what I know only the Fair ever gets anyone from outside the valley to visit.”

‘Are you coming for the fair?’

‘You know it! I’m bringing Kerry down too!’

‘That’s great!’

Jackson sighed and leaned back against the tree’s trunk. Piper’s head popped out from Alex’s lap as she rose to trot over and flop down beside Jackson. He scratched at her head, ignoring a fresh text on his phone. Alex looked over with concern. 

“What’s wrong? Something happen with your friend?”

Jackson shook his head. “Not really, no. She just got a new boyfriend and she’s bringing him down to the fair. She says she’s coming to visit me, but if they’re together then I’m not really going to get any real time with her. This is just gonna turn into a date and I’m gonna be the third wheel like always.” He sighed, closing his eyes and tapping his head against the tree trunk before turning to look at Alex. “Sorry, I’m whining. Bet you never have to worry about this stuff, huh? What with you and Haley-”

“We’re not a thing,” Alex shot, “People keep thinking we are, but we aren’t. I thought I told you that before….or am I just forgetting stuff again?”

“Oh, sorry. I think you did yeah,” Jackson’s eyes darted over to the beach’s bridge, where Lewis appeared to be making fanfare for a portly man in a purple suit and top hat. He had a jovial look to him, like the kind of man you’d expect to play a mall Santa. “Hey, is that guy the Governor Lewis keeps making a fuss about?”

Alex leaned over to glance towards the man. “Yeah looks like. Guess we gotta start putting stuff into the potluck. What are you throwing in? I just got a bunch of grapes from Joja.”

Jackson took a puffy white vegetable from his bag and held it out. “I grew a halfway decent cauliflower over the spring. I caught wind that there was going to be some kind of potluck later, and this was the best vegetable I had, so I figured I’d hold on to it.”

\-------

After the soup was served and everyone had their fill, the beach slowly cleared out and Jackson was left to help with the cleaning. Help, however, seemed to largely be “do it all himself while Lewis breathed down Marnie’s neck and praised her for impressing the governor with her cooking. Luckily for Jackson, however, Alex had offered to hang back and clear the tables while he dealt with the dance floor. As he cleaned, he suddenly got a tap on the shoulder.

“GAH! ….Yoba, Haley what is with people in this town and sneaking up on everyone?”

Haley giggled. “Sorry, sorry. I just needed to pick up my speakers and Alex was too busy to lend a hand.”

Jackson sighed, his heart settling back down in his chest. “Yeah, I can take a minute to help you out, no worries.” He stepped over to the speakers and heaved one up into Haley’s wagon as she took the other. Once they were both in, she crossed her arms over the top and looked off into the sunset. 

“Jackson, I have a question for you.”

Jackson felt his heart drop. He hated that phrasing, it never failed to make his blood run cold. “Y-yeah? What’s up?”

“Are you gay?”

Jackson hated that question even more. He felt his eyes go wide as panic set in. He was trapped. If he ignored the question and went back to work, it would be just like giving a yes. If he ran home, Lewis would be pissed….and it would be like giving a yes. He could lie, but it wasn’t something he had lied about in years. He stood in silence, staring at Haley with his mouth agape, before something finally fell out.

“Yes.”

It was quiet, a tiny answer to a large question. The way Haley pursed her lips in response didn’t help. Jackson felt the answer hang in the air for what felt like an eternity as Haley’s eyes cut through him.

“....Ok, say something?” he finally sputtered out.

“Do you like Alex?”

Jackson found himself shrugging in response this time, an answer that came much faster than the prior. “I did, at least in that puppydog schoolboy way when I first met him, but I...I pretty much got over it. I think. I don’t know. Argh, why are you even asking!”

“Because,” Haley drummed her finely manicured nails against the speaker, “I think he likes you back and just doesn’t want to admit it.”

Jackson’s heart raced, pounding in his chest. He felt his face start to flush a deep crimson. “What are you t-talking about? That’s crazy...h-he totally has a thing for you and just doesn’t want to admit it.”

Haley smirked...but Jackson couldn’t help but feel that it wasn’t a smirk of confidence. There was a certain melancholy in her eyes that her lips tried to hide. “If Alex had a thing for me we would’ve been married by now, Jackson. Alex is a dense meathead and barely aware of his own feelings. He’s like your dog, in a way. Everything is a friend but he never really stops to think about anyone as anything more than that, but I saw the way he watched you today. That’s not how a straight guy watches another guy.”

Jackson gulped. “So, what about it?” He shuffled in place, rubbing at the back of his leg with his right foot. “Alex is a friend, I don’t want to ruin that anyway. A-and I didn’t come here to worry about that stuff, I’ve got the farm to worry about and-”

“Oh my Yoba would you shut up!” Haley flicked her hair away from her face, staring Jackson down with a focused expression, “I swear you both are like cheap characters from some trashy romance novel. ‘I don’t want to ruin a friendship’ is just a trash excuse you give yourself to keep yourself from trying.”

“Why the hell are you even asking me this crap? Gonna play matchmaker?”

“As a matter of fact, I am!” Haley gave a wide grin, “I’m going to hook you two hopeless romantics up if it’s the last thing I do, because I absolutely cannot stand to watch two people stand around as helpless as you two. Give me your number.” She held out her palm, and Jackson handed over his phone. After a few quick taps she handed it back. “There, now we’re going to work together to get you two together. Alright?”

Jackson felt trapped once more, and Haley’s grin was strangely unsettling. Despite it all, he swallowed his fear and shook her hand. “Deal.”

“Good. Now you run on home, I’ll finish taking care of the beach for you. Consider it part of my apology from before.”

Jackson gave a quick thanks and ran back home with Piper, a strange fluttering feeling in his chest. Haley hummed to herself as she finished clearing the beach. Once the palm fronds were cleared, she stood back and admired her handiwork before giggling to herself.

“And with that, he’s all mine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For all you Haley fans out there, I'm so sorry. Don't take her interpretation in this fic as slander against her character or anything like that, I actually really like her myself. The sad truth was that out of every girl in town, she was the only one who could reasonably be this petty. Her connections with Alex didn't help her in the end either.


End file.
